Inner Rage
by Randall Flagg2000
Summary: CH.7 REVISED AND STORY COMPLETED AT LONG LAST!Shippo has always taken abuse from Inuyasha and put up with it well, but one day Inuyasha goes too far and Shippo runs away feeling hated and unloved. Full summary inside.
1. Harsh Words and Heartbreak

Summary: Shippo has always taken a lot of abuse from Inuyasha and he's put up with it for quite some time. But one day the dog demon goes too far, says some really cruel things to him, and he runs away feeling hated and unloved. As Kagome and crew search for the little fox kit, they don't know he has been taken in by a ruthless coyote demon who possesses six shikon shards. A demon who enjoys turning people against one another. And with Shippo's growing hatred of Inuyasha, he could be the ultimate tool to the undoing of Inuyasha and his comrades. I don't own Inuyasha or any quotes you might find along the way in any way whatsoever.  
  
Oh, and it should be known my story "The Gale is now a Breeze" is shamefully discontinued. I'm sorry but I had no idea how I could continue it and I had written myself into a corner. And even more, I wasn't having much fun writing it. I am really sorry for any inconvenience and I promise you that this will not happen with this story. I really am sorry. -Randall Flagg2  
  
Goodbye cruel world, it's over. Walk on by.  
-Pink Floyd  
  
BONK!! The thundering fist of Inuyasha crashed down on Shippo's head yet again. "You stupid runt! Do you ever get tired of bothering me?!" Inuyasha roared. Shippo already felt tears coming to his eyes. It wasn't anything new. Just another beating for doing the slightest thing to annoy Inuyasha. It wasn't even a harmful prank! All he had done was give the hanyou a piece of joke candy! Okay, maybe he shouldn't have done it in the first place, but still it felt good. Everybody did things like that at one pont in their lives, right? Shippo had hoped that he would take it in good humor, but of course he had failed once again to take the hanyou's temper into account and was paying a high price for it.  
  
"Idiot fox! Do you ever learn your place?!" WHAM!! Another hard blow to the head. Shippo began to wail. Again, that was nothing new.  
  
"Ow! Ow! Kagome help!!" he called. Inuyasha continued pounding the little kit on the head over and over, unaware of a glaring teenager standing behind him. Shippo smiled inwardly, knowing what was about to happen.  
  
"Sit boy!" was the command issued forth from the girl's mouth. The beating was stopped as Inuyasha was suddenly hurled into the ground with the force of a meteor. For a moment, he lay on the ground completely still, kissing the dirt. Then in a flash he was up on his feet.  
  
"Stupid wench! Don't you ever mind your own business?!" he bellowed. Kagome ignored him and picked Shippo up and rubbed his head. He was still wailing.  
  
"Shippo it's alright." the miko cooed. "He won't hurt you anymore." Shippo came back down to sniffles and allowed her to rock him back and forth a little. Inuyasha glared daggers at them. Kagome glared back.  
  
"Answer my question wench!"  
  
"Maybe I don't mind my own business Inuyasha, but you have to stop hitting him so much!"  
  
"Why should I? That kid apparently wasn't taught any respect by his parents and your just spoiling her! Don't they have something called punishment in your time?!" he hissed.  
  
"They do have it Inuyasha, but it's not brutalizing kids when they so much as blink the wrong way. We have much more civilized ways of dealing with bad behavior."  
  
"Yeah? Maybe that's why you spoil him so much! The kid has to learn some respect Kagome!"  
  
"He will in due time but Shippo will only learn fear if you just hit him for everything he does Inuyasha! Have you no manners yourself?" Inuyasha snorted and stormed off to sit in a tree to cool off. Shippo looked up at Kagome.  
  
"Thanks again Kagome."  
  
"No problem Shippo. You won't have to worry about him as long as I'm here."  
  
"He's wrong about my parents Kagome. They did punish me when I was bad, but I knew that they hurt too when they did it. I always saw pain in dad's eyes when he beat me and I knew he was only doing it for my own good. Inuyasha is different! Sometimes I think he enjoys hitting me!" Shippo exclaimed.  
  
"Oh I don't think he enjoys it. I think he's just short tempered, that's all." Kagome looked at the sky and saw the moon was out and it was getting dark. "C'mon Shippo. Let's get some sleep." Kagome took him back to the campsite and set up a sleeping bag. She got undressed, got into her pajamas, and fell asleep with Shippo sleeping next to her as always. Sango and Miroku had already gone to bed earlier.  
  
Later in the night, Shippo awoke to the loud snap of a twig. Something was here. The fox bristled nervously, looking around to see what was here. Then there was another snap from behind him. Shippo turned around just in time to see Inuyasha's hand fly out and grab him by the head. Before he could so much as scream, he was dragged off into the woods. Inuyasha stopped at a lone tree stump and sat down on it, putting Shippo down in front of him.  
  
"Inuyasha! I was sleeping! Why did you bring me here?!" he demanded.  
  
"To tell you some things you ought to know brat!" Inuyasha snarled.  
  
"Like what?!"  
  
"Like how much you weigh us down!" At that, Shippo froze.  
  
"W-what do you m-mean?"  
  
"What I mean is that I'm sick and tired of you being a burden on us. All you ever do is slow us down you stupid kid!" Shippo gasped. Inuyasha had never said this to him before! "Everyday, I have to put up with your whining and bratty behavior all day long! Every single god damn day of my life! And every time I try to teach you respect, Kagome butts in and throws me into the ground! Well I've had it! You're nothing but a burden on us!" Shippo's lips quivered. Why was he being so cruel? "You want to know how you slow us down? I'll tell you! First of all, you're a stupid, worthless, whiny brat of a kid who can't even hurt the weakest of demons! Even when you use your magic, it's all illusion! Nothing of it is real! How can we benefit from illusions?! And secondly, you slow us down! If it wasn't for you, we could move through Japan at a much faster pace and collect more jewel shards then we already have! We could have even beaten Naraku by now! But no! We can't because we always have to save your hide! You just slow us down kid! If it wasn't for you, we could have ended all the problems that have been plaguing us from the beginning by now! We should have left you to Hiten and Manten, you know that? If they had turned you into a fox pelt, we could have killed them and gotten something to use as a decoration at least! Then at least you might bring us some benefit! But as long as your with us, you'll do nothing but be a burden for us! I bet even Kagome hates you deep inside and she just doesn't realize it yet! So just stay out of my way from now on, okay?!" Inuyasha smashed Shippo on the head and walked off back towards the campsite.  
  
Shippo did not move for quite some time. He could not believe the words that Inuyasha had said to him. How could he be so cruel? Shippo began to cry softly into the ground, tears coursing down his face as silent sobs racked his body. Was it true? Was he really a burden on them? He hoped he wasn't, but what Inuyasha said was true. He did hold them back in some ways. Taking a kid with you was always a sure fire way to slow things down, especially when they're small. And he had almost gotten Kagome killed in their battle with the thunder brothers. He knew it. He really was a burden on them. Shippo got up, no longer crying, and walked off. He did not go towards the campsite. In fact he did not go anywhere near it. He went south, away from the site. His jogged slightly, then he broke into a full scale run, wanting nothing more then to get away from Inuyasha, his tormentor and the one he so much hated.  
  
Short chapter, I know. Poor Shippo. Anyway, this will be continued ASAP or when I find the time to write, so stay tuned. Now review please. -Randall Flagg2 


	2. Kitsune and Coyote

Here comes part two. Prepare to meet the villain. -Randall Flagg2  
  
It's a type of person, isn't it? To a certain type of person, a man like you is nothing but garbage. Because they are high up. They don't think a person like you has the right to live. -Randall Flagg to Lloyd Henreid. The Stand.  
  
Come on now. I hear your feeling down. Well I can ease your pain. Get you on your feet again. -Pink Floyd  
  
Shippo paused under a tree, out of breath. How long had he been running for? He did not know. All he knew was that he was far from the campsite where his friends were sleeping now. He sat down against the tree and sniffled. The words spoken too him earlier were ringing in his ears like a recorded message on an answering machine. "Why?" Shippo whispered. "Why Inuyasha? Why are you so mean?" Tears overcame him. He began to sob. Shippo wept into his knees, shaking with each sob that escaped his throat. He couldn't take this anymore. He had taken too much abuse, both mental and physical from Inuyasha and he couldn't stand it any longer. That was only one of his problems. Ever since his father had gained a shikon shard, everything had gone wrong. First the thunder brothers had killed his mother and father, then he had almost gotten Inuyasha and Kagome killed by them, and now a new demon with even more power had arisen and was hunting for them. If it had not been for that stupid shard none of this would have happened! He sobbed harder.  
  
"Little boy, are you alright?" asked a voice. Shippo looked up to see a man looking down at him. He wanted to ask what the man wanted, but he could not. All his sadness disappeared into a bitter anger at being disturbed.  
  
"Leave me alone." he whispered.  
  
The man frowned slightly. "That really is no way to speak to your elders." he said in a slightly scolding tone.  
  
It all seemed to happen slowly. Shippo jumped to his feet and felt his hand fly out. A blue ball of fire leapt out his open palm and struck the man square in the chest. He screamed and tore at his kimono shirt. As he did, Shippo flung another fireball at him. It seemed to work. The man shrieked and ran off down the road, screaming something about demons. Within a few minutes, he had disappeared from view entirely.  
  
Shippo paused. Had he really done that? Oh Kami, what had he done? What had come over him? He did not know. Shippo did not understand at all why he had done that. He had never attacked a human before. But he did know one thing. During that short time period, he had felt happy for some reason? Why? Because he had finally done what he had so long dreamed of doing to Inuyasha? He did not know why. But now he felt even worse then before. The man, whoever he was, had not deserved that. Shippo's lips trembled. He sat back down, buried his face into his hands and began to sob uncontrollably.  
  
Somewhere in the night, a tall figure walked. The body was that of a thin man who wore a tattered red kimono. He wore his long hair in a long braid. His face was handsome and narrow. But this man was not human. All you had to do was look at him and you would know he was a demon. He had a long brown tail and a pair of brown coyote ears jutting out of his forehead. His teeth were sharp fangs and his nails were as sharp as razors. This man went by the name of Senjeta and he was incredibly hungry. "Of all the rotten luck." he snarled to himself. "Why is there never any food around when you need it?" All night long he had scavenged for food and had found not even so much as a scrap. He would have hunted, but being a coyote he was more for scavenging. He had searched down in the woods where normally he could find a deer among other things, but to no avail. He had searched the prairie in hopes of finding the ever delicious prairie dog, but that search had ended in disappointment too. He had searched everywhere, and still he could find no food. Senjeta growled deeply. It seemed he would get no dinner that night.  
  
"There must be something I can do. Maybe I should hunt instead. After all, it would be fun to see how much more these shikon shards can do for me." Yes, that had been quite a find. He had been lucky to have found so many shikon shards in one cave. Senjeta didn't know who they belonged to, but he didn't care. Coyotes took what they could get, and no demon would pass up the opportunity to gain a sacred jewel piece. He had found six. Someone must have been stashing them away. If they were, too bad for them. Nevertheless, it had been quite a find indeed. Then a cry rang out in his ears. It was followed by something or someone running away, followed by somebody sobbing. Senjeta whirled around and sniffed the air. It smelled of a mainly of a fox, and a human scent was leaving the scene. He smiled. Human meat was quite tasty and so was fox meat. It seemed dinner would be served after all. Senjeta dashed towards the sound at high speed, courtesy of the shards in his legs.  
  
The man had stopped running down the pathway. He had finally managed to put the flames out, but he was still quite frightened. He had heard many times of demons and how they dwelled in the forests, but he had never actually seen one until now. "Who was he?" he whispered to the darkness. "Major bad kid, that's what. I'll never go in these woods again!"  
  
"You won't go anywhere now human." crooned a voice from behind. The man turned around just in time to see Senjeta descending on him. The night was soon filled with horrible ripping sounds and horrible, loud shrieks.  
  
Shippo's sobs were interrupted by the sound of screaming. His head jerked up towards the sound, but he saw nothing. Nothing at all. But he could still here the screams which slowly turned into loud gurgles. Then there was a horrible ripping sound followed by loud chewing. Shippo's stomach grew sick. An animal had gotten whoever he had burned. Out of shame, he began to cry yet again. As he sobbed, he was not aware of a figure approaching him. Senjeta looked down at the crying kitsune and for some strange reason felt sympathetic for him. Why would he be feeling sympathy towards his prey? He should be eating him at this very moment, even if fox meat wasn't his favorite. Instead he knelt down and lifted the fox child's face to his.  
  
"Hi." he said. Shippo's eyes widened and he shrank away.  
  
"Please don't hurt me." he whimpered.  
  
"Why would I hurt you? I'm not going to eat you. I just want to help." he consoled. Shippo lowered his head and wept. Senjeta wiped the kit's tears away.  
  
"Shh. Don't cry. Is something troubling you?" Senjeta asked. That caught Shippo's attention. The kit looked up at him with swimming eyes.  
  
"I don't want to talk about it."  
  
"You can tell me. I told you I wouldn't hurt you."  
  
Shippo sniffled and finally gave in. "Alright. I'll tell you." Shippo told Senjeta everything he could about what had happened. Senjeta's eyes grew wider and wider with each word.  
  
"Inuyasha, eh?" he thought to himself. "The half breed who has gathered so many shikon shards and slain so many demons? Who would have known it would be him?" By the time Shippo was finished, he was in tears again.  
  
"So he said that to you? I didn't know half breeds could be so heartless!" he sneered. Shippo nodded, weeping.  
  
"Well that's alright. It's perfectly alright. I mean, you never needed him."  
  
"W-what do you m-mean?" Shippo stammered.  
  
"Oh nothing much. Only that I'm surprised you decided to stay with him for so long. I'm impressed by how patient you are."  
  
"Thank you." Shippo said.  
  
"Oh no problem. I like you kid. And do you know why? Because you can endure. You've endured countless beatings and so many insults and you've still remained innocent to this very day. I like that in a person. And you know what else? I know what you've been through too. I too was insulted and abused by my parents and I know what it's like to have to live the hard life. But I repaid them alright. Their under the ground now and I promise you they are sorry for what they did to me. You're kind of like that. Your being mistreated and beaten by Inuyasha, but you've put up with it so far. Now you've finally got the courage to run away and you have. You're free. And you too probably want to get back at him right?"  
  
Shippo did not know what to say. He was astonished by how much this man, whoever he was, had pointed out. But this man was right. He was mad and he was mistreated and he had had enough. Everything this man had said was true. And he realized something else. He hated Inuyasha. He hated him from the deepest part of his heart and soul. Gods above, he had taken so much from him. And now this man had shown up and pointed out everything he did not know. His sadness became anger again.  
  
"Yes, I do." he replied. Senjeta held out his hand.  
  
"Come with me. You can live with me for awhile and I will help you forget about him. He'll never hurt you again. I promise." Shippo smiled and took his hand. "What is your name by the way?"  
  
"Shippo."  
  
"Ah, a fine name. My name is Senjeta." he replied. As he walked off with Shippo he thought to himself "I can use him for my plan. Oh yes indeed, I can."  
  
Hope that part was better then part one. Bye. -Randall Flagg2 


	3. Shippo and Kagome's Anger

Woah, quickie update eh? Hope this part pleases you. Happy Valentines day to all! -Randall Flagg2  
  
Raven Demon: Thanks for the reviews man. Wait till you see what Senjeta has planned. Hope you like this. Maybe you would like to help me with the next few chapters if you have the time? I could use the help.  
  
And remember I repay! -Rose Madder  
  
Hell hath no fury like a woman scorned. -Old saying  
  
Inuyasha walked back to the campsite. He was quite tired and he needed a good nights sleep. Blowing off steam like that always made him tired. "Worthless runt." he grunted. "I don't know why Kagome keeps him. He's just a nuisance."  
  
"Maybe he is, but he is a good nuisance." his mind whispered. Inuyasha froze. He hated it when his conscience got into his affairs. Sometimes he could swear it had a mind of its own, it was so annoying. He wished he could ignore it when it came at him, but whenever it did, every other thought in his mind was drowned out by it. So, against his will, he listened.  
  
"How do you live with yourself anyway? I don't think you've ever been this mean to him before. Up until now, I didn't think you could have gone any lower."  
  
"Oh shut up. What do you know anyway? He deserved it."  
  
"Perhaps in your opinion. He's only a little kid you know. You should have gone easier on him." Inuyasha covered his ears like a child scared of a loud noise. He did not want to hear this. "And think about how Kagome will react." Inuyasha felt his dog ears droop in shame. His conscience was right about that. Kagome would be mad as hell when she found out what he had done, and from how high a magnitude it had been, Miroku and Sango were apt to join in. He sighed. As usual his conscience had won out again. Inuyasha sighed again. He knew what he had to do now. He walked off back towards the area where he had taken Shippo.  
  
When Inuyasha arrived, he found now source of the fox kit anywhere. He began to panic. Where was he? Maybe he had- Oh God no! He hadn't run away, had he? Inuyasha's heart pounded like a bass drum in his chest. If Shippo had run away and Kagome learned it was his fault, she would sit him to death. He knew what it was like when she was mad at him. Then he caught scent of something that had not been there before. He got down to the ground and sniffed the dirt. It was Shippo's scent, but for some reason he could smell the scent of a coyote mingled in with it. "He's been kidnapped." Inuyasha growled. He jerked up. He could smell the same scent a short distance away. Maybe he could catch Shippo's kidnapper and then apologize to him. Inuyasha jumped to his feet and sprinted off in the direction of the mystery person.  
  
Shippo and Senjeta were just about to approach a hill, when the coyote suddenly spun around. A low, guttural growl escaped his throat.  
  
"What is it?" Shippo asked.  
  
"I think you know well who it is boy." Senjeta remarked. And sure enough, Inuyasha bounded out of the bushes and into sight. Shippo moaned. The hanyou had come to punish him even more.  
  
"Who the hell are you?!" Inuyasha snarled.  
  
"Who I am is none of your business half breed. The question is what are you doing here?"  
  
"I came here for the kid. If you know what's good for you, you'll hand him over." Inuyasha said, unsheathing Tetsusaiga. Senjeta's eyes widened in surprise. In all his life, he had never seen a sword like this. He tensed, in case the dog demon tried to attack.  
  
"Nice blade half breed, but your still now match for me." Inuyasha charged and swung Tetsusaiga with all of his strength at the coyote. Shippo screamed and jumped to the side. Senjeta paused, then grabbed Tetsusaiga with his right hand and flung it aside. Inuyasha stepped back in surprise. Nobody had repelled the Tetsusaiga with such ease before! Before he could attack again, Senjeta dashed forwards with crazy speed and delivered a savage punch to Inuyasha's stomach. The hanyou doubled over, giving Senjeta enough time to kick him in the head. He screamed and fell on his back. The coyote grinned. Easy picking.  
  
"So this is the famed Inuyasha?" he asked Shippo. "This is the one who has beaten you and tormented you all this time? Hmph! I was hoping for something a bit more challenging!" he snorted. Shippo giggled. This was quite entertaining. Senjeta laughed with him.  
  
Inuyasha struggled to get up, but could not. He felt as if somebody had broken all of his bones. He didn't know how his adversary could be so strong. And why was Shippo laughing? If he was enjoying this, Inuyasha would give him a beating he would never forget. Out of the corner of his eyes, he saw Shippo approach him.  
  
"That's right boy. Remember all the times he's hurt you and yelled at you. All the times you have been mistreated by him. Now is your golden opportunity! Pay him back for what the way he has made you suffer! Make him feel pain!" Inuyasha saw Shippo's eyes take on a strange luster which he had never seen before. He didn't know what it was, but he knew it wasn't a good sign. The kitsune looked like he had gone crazy. At last Shippo spoke.  
  
"I'm leaving Inuyasha." the kit said. "I'm sick of you hitting for everything I do and I'm sick of you! I chose to go with Senjeta because he's a lot nicer then you are! And if you try to stop me, he'll slaughter you!" Inuyasha's eyes were wide. Did he just hear what he thought he had heard? Surely he had not. All of a sudden, and incredible silver flare of agony shot up through his midsection as Shippo delivered a swift kick in between his legs. Inuyasha shrieked and felt hot tears ooze out of his eyes.  
  
"I should have done that to you long ago Inuyasha." Shippo said sternly.  
  
"Nice going boy. Maybe now he will know to treat people like you more kindly. After all, good things come to those who wait. You have now repaid him for all the unkindness he has bestowed on you. Shall we go?"  
  
"Yes!" Shippo said. He hopped on Senjeta's back and went off with him into the distance.  
  
Inuyasha slowly crawled to his feet. The throbbing in his crotch had subsided, but he was still having trouble standing up. The kick had hurt a lot more then he had expected it to. He looked around for Shippo and Senjeta and saw them not. "Damn it." he cursed. "I am now officially a dead man." He got up and staggered back towards the campsite, determined not to tell Kagome about what had happened. One thing was certain though. He was sorry for what he had done to Shippo and wished he could take it back.  
  
"I was a fool." he muttered. "I shouldn't have said those things to him." Inuyasha felt one single tear drip out of his eye. He didn't know if it was from the kick... or something else.  
  
The next morning...  
  
"Inuyasha have you seen Shippo anywhere?" I haven't seen him at all." Kagome asked. Inuyasha said nothing. He only continued staring off into the woods.  
  
"Inuyasha? I asked you a question." Kagome said, slightly more annoyed.  
  
"Oh, he's around somewhere Kagome. I bet he's just off in the woods or something." Miroku replied.  
  
"Tell her." Inuyasha's mind whispered.  
  
"No way. She'll kill me." he muttered.  
  
"Kill you for what?" Kagome asked. Inuyasha blushed. He knew she had heard that, but he didn't want to.  
  
"Oh nothing." he said in his "I don't have anything to say to you." tone. Kagome's eyes narrowed slightly.  
  
"Inuyasha, is this about Shippo?" she asked in a testy tone. Inuyasha gritted his teeth. If she found out, the dreaded command would go on forever! He turned his head away and whistles, trying his best to sound innocent. Now there was no question that Kagome's eyes were narrowed.  
  
"Tell me Inuyasha." the miko growled. Inuyasha did not answer.  
  
"Tell her if you know what's good for you." his conscience said. Inuyasha opened his mouth at last and spoke.  
  
"Kagome, I have a confession to make."  
  
"Okay, confess. Does this have to do with Shippo?"  
  
"Yes." Inuyasha grimaced and began to speak of the events last night. "Last night when you went to bed, I took him to an area in the woods and said some really mean things to him. I told him he was worthless and that he was a burden on us, that he held us back, that we should have let the thunder brothers kill him and that he should leave us alone. After that I punched him in the head and left. Then I changed my mind and went back to apologize to him, but he wasn't there. I followed this strange scent and found him running away with a coyote demon. I tried to get him back, but the guy beat me in a fight and he and Shippo left. I tried to go after them but-" Before the hanyou could finish, he saw Kagome's face and felt a wave of hopeless terror come over him. In all his life he had never seen such absolute rage on one face. Kagome's face was red and her eyes were bulging in crazed anger. The girl's fists were clenched so tightly that Inuyasha was surprised they didn't draw blood. If Kagome had been any madder, steam might have come out of her ears. Inuyasha let out a rather dog-like whimper and shrank away, ears drooping. He braced himself for the dreaded command, but instead Kagome did something she had never done before. She drew back her hand and struck him in the face as hard as she could.  
  
"You bastard!!" she roared and struck him again, causing him to rock backwards. "You fucking bastard!!" Inuyasha recoiled at those words. She had never called him that before. Already she was drawing back her hand to slap him a third time when Sango grabbed her arm.  
  
"Kagome what is the matter with you?" she asked. Kagome wrenched her arm free and got in one last good slap before Sango locked her arms around her waist. At first she struggled to free herself, but to no avail. Sango was after all a demon hunter, which made her a bit stronger then most people at the time. Then at last Kagome calmed down and Sango released her grip on her. Inuyasha just stood there rubbing his face where she had hit him. It hurt, but not nearly as badly as the pain from last night.  
  
"Kagome I'm sorry. I was just mad and-"  
  
"Sorry?! What have you ever been sorry for in your life?!" Kagome screeched. She was so mad she began to cry. "You drove him off and now who knows what's happened to him!" Kagome collapsed to the ground crying. Inuyasha's heart wrenched. God, he hated it when she cried. Sango looked up at him.  
  
"What did you do to get her going like this?" she asked. Inuyasha explained the whole story again. By the end of it, Sango was quite mad but not nearly as mad as Kagome. She however did not attack him or yell at him. Rather instead she just asked "How do you manage to live with yourself Inuyasha?" and walked off to find Miroku.  
  
"Kagome, please stop it. I promise you we can find him. I bet he's not too far off."  
  
"How do you know that?!" the girl screeched. "You don't know anything about where he could be!! He could be dead for all we know!" Inuyasha winced. "It's all your fault you know! You drove him off because of y- your goddamn t-temper and n-n-now h-he- could be a-anywhere!" she sobbed. Inuyasha backed away. She was right and he knew it. It was his fault. He was the cause of all this.  
  
"Stop crying alright?! We'll find him somehow! I still say he could still be alive." Kagome sniffled and forced herself to stop crying.  
  
"Alright then. We'll look for him." she said. "But if your wrong Inuyasha, I'll say the S word until the cows come home. You hear me?!" Inuyasha nodded. That was definite incentive to start searching immediately. Kagome began to pack up her things. It was going to be a long day indeed.  
  
Somwhere further off, Shippo and Senejta were still traveling. "Where are we going?" Shippo asked.  
  
"We're going to my home in the south. My tribe will welcome you warmly I think." Senjeta replied. Shippo smiled. It felt good to have a place where you belonged.  
  
"How much longer will it be?"  
  
"Not much loner now. If I run we should make it by noon. Hang on tight!" Senjeta suddenly sprinted forward at a speed that Koga would have envied. Shippo held on for dear life and screamed joyfully like a child on a carnival ride. He couldn't wait to meet the coyote demon tribe.  
  
That's part three. Next chapter you'll see what Senjeta is plotting and what he intends to use Shippo for. Bye! -Randall Flagg2 


	4. Meeting the Coyote Tribe

Here we go. On to part four. Here we meet the coyote demon tribe and see what Senjeta and another villain are planning for Shippo. Read on. -Randall Flagg2  
  
Welcome to the hotel California. Such a lovely place, such a lovely face. -The Eagles  
  
The devil can take a pleasing form. -Old saying  
  
Thank you for loving me. -Bon Jovi  
  
The night was empty, save for a single figure in a black cloak. His face could not be seen under the hood. He was tall, about a little over six feet and his only his hands could be seen through his billowing cloak. The cloaked figure sniffed the air. Senjeta was back and from the smell of it he had someone else with him. The smell was not of the dead, proving that Senjeta probably did not want it eaten. In the blink of an eye, Senjeta was in front of him. The figure saw that the person Senjeta had brought with him was a young fox demon who was sleeping quietly on his shoulder.. He smiled beneath his hood. He couldn't help it. He had a weakness for small children. He didn't know why, but he did. Maybe it was their innocence, or perhaps their sweet nature and ability to accept things as they come. He didn't know what it was, nor did he care.  
  
"Ah, Inarki I see you have been on guard." Senjeta said.  
  
"Yes my lord. Nothing much is new here. We sent some of our hunters out earlier and they found some fresh kill nearby. It's yours if you want it."  
  
"Thanks, but I think I'll save if for tomorrow. I've already eaten my fill." Senjeta said, patting his stomach. "Take a bite of it yourself if you wish."  
  
"Thank you sir." Inarki replied. "I'm not really very hungry though."  
  
"Very well then. You may rest if you wish." Senjeta walked on, only to be stopped by Inarki.  
  
"Pardon me sir, but who may I ask is he?"  
  
"He is a boy named Shippo whom I am taking into my care. Why do you ask?"  
  
"Just curious my lord. I thought for a moment he was more food." Inarki said.  
  
Senjeta laughed heartily. "Oh, I promise you he's not food. He will be very useful to us when the time comes." Inarki grinned. He knew what Senjeta meant by "useful". Senjeta walked up a small hill and overlooked his kingdom. Spread around below the hill were various huts and small temples. Patrolling the area was a pair of coyotes. They looked up at Senjeta and wagged their tails at him. Senjeta smiled. It was good to be home. He walked down the pathway towards a large hut at the end of the pathway. The one of the coyotes sniffed Senjeta's leg, inspecting the new scent he had brought with him.  
  
"He is not food. He is a member of our tribe now so back off!" Senjeta hissed. The mangy canine whined and shrank away. It may have been an animal, but it knew better then to entice its master's wrath. Senjeta walked down towards the large hut and stepped into it. He went into an antechamber and set Shippo down on a bed of hay. He smiled again. He looked so innocent like that. What a shame all that innocence would soon be shredded by the boy's own hatred. Senjeta's warm smile became an unpleasant grin. Tomorrow the boy's training would begin.  
  
The next morning...  
  
Shippo awoke to something sniffing at his face. He couldn't see what it was, it was so close. All he could see was a bit of brownish fur and a large black snout. The kitsune yelped and jumped back. The creature, which Shippo now saw was a large coyote, yelped and jumped away as well. It bristled and growled softly at him. Shippo whimpered and scooted away from the animal. For a moment the coyote looked like it was going to pounce when a hand descended on its back.  
  
"Don't. Senjeta-sama specifically forbid anybody to hurt him unless he gives them permission." The coyote's fur went back down and its front lips went with it. Now it just stood there staring at Shippo impassively. Shippo relaxed and looked up to look at the figure which had calmed it. The figure was tall and slender. He wore a black cloak which entirely concealed his body. Only his hands were visible. But what fascinated Shippo the most was the person's face which could not be seen, but seemed to be rippling and contracting as if it really had no form at all.  
  
"Your up I see. Did you enjoy your rest?" he asked.  
  
"Um, I guess so." Shippo said. "Who are you?"  
  
"My name is Inarki, second in command to Senjeta-sama."  
  
"Senjeta? He brought me here?"  
  
"Normally I'd punish you for such disrespect, but he forbade me too for the time being. But if you must know, yes it was him who brought you here. You are in the village of the coyote demon tribe." Shippo's ears perked up at that. He had heard of the coyote demons from his father long before. According to his father, the coyotes were similar to the wolf demon tribe in the way they both wanted land, but with one difference. Whereas the wolves took land from other demons, the coyote's only looked for land that was unoccupied. If they could find it, they would take it. But just like the wolves they would defend their territory mercilessly and anybody who dared to trespass on their land was quickly killed. Shippo himself had never met a coyote demon before, but now all that had changed.  
  
"What is he going to do with me?"  
  
"He has taken you in as one of us. In simpler terms, you're going to be living with us from now on." Inarki replied. Shippo gasped in shock. Him, living with a tribe of coyotes? It couldn't be. But still, it was quite nice. After all, had it not been for Kagome, Inuyasha most certainly would not have taken him in. But now he had been freely taken in and there had been no hassle or anything. No requirements, no nothing. It had been just like that. Shippo stood there for a moment, then flung himself into Inarki's cloak and began to cry with absolute joy over finally being accepted. No he wasn't just crying. He was wailing. All of his happiness exploded out of him in horrible screams and loud cries. He had finally gotten back what he had lost: Somebody who would love him and not abuse him. Inarki hugged him.  
  
"Just let it out. It will make things easier." he whispered. After a few minutes, Shippo's cries went down to sniffles and whimpers. He looked up at Inarki with red eyes.  
  
"I'm sorry Inarki-sama, I'm just so happy." he whispered. Had Inarki had a face, he would have smiled. He rubbed Shippo's back.  
  
"You don't have to worry about respecting me kiddo. I'm glad to have you with us too." Inarki soothed. That brought on another spasm of weeping, this time not as harsh, and Shippo dampened Inarki's cloak even more. After a few more minutes he stopped crying and wiped his eyes.  
  
"Come on. I'll introduce you to some of the villagers. Would you like that?" Shippo nodded. Inarki took his hand and took him outside the hut to introduce him to the tribe's inhabitants.  
  
Upstairs, Senjeta slowly reclined on his bed. Everything was going as he had intended it to so far. Now he only had to keep it up for a time and the sacred jewel would be his. He looked outside the window and saw Inarki leading Shippo into another hut. "He's going to meet some of my people." he remarked. "Maybe he'll make some friends." Senjeta sighed happily. Once his plan was complete, all he had to do was confront Inuyasha and his numbfuck friends for the sacred jewel and he would become the most powerful demon in the world. It would be simple once he gained full control of that boy Shippo. Senjeta and his comrade Inarki were very sensitive to human and demon emotions, and that made it all the more easy to control people. He had always enjoyed using people for these strange purposes. He had taken in abused people, male and female alike and always found a way to appeal to them. He normally left the emotion reading to Inarki, since he could sniff out any emotion just by looking at a person, but he still took his part in it. It was quite simple really. You took in the outcast, appealed to them, built up their inner rage, and then when they were angry enough, you used coyote magic on them and then the fun would really begin. It was so simple and so fun. Senjeta grinned. This Shippo child would be the perfect specimen for him to use against Inuyasha. Deep below the boy's innocence lurked a dark power that Senjeta thought he could awaken with some time. Once he did, Shippo would be the ultimate tool of destruction for him to use on Inuyasha and his friends. For the time being, he would train the boy in the art of fighting and continue to appeal to his interests and even more, his hatred for Inuyasha. Then he would have no problem claiming the sacred jewel. But for now, he would bide his time.  
  
"Inuyasha, you fool," Senjeta said to nobody in particular, "you will soon rue the day you took in this boy!" He began to laugh.  
  
Review Responses  
  
Raven Demon: Well I had to make him go alone in the woods or this stuff would never have happened. Thanks for the reviews. Your character is here too (it's Inarki).  
  
Maru-sha: Yeah, I agree. Inuyasha can be a major jerk sometimes. Don't worry though. Things will work out for Shippo somehow.  
  
Out4Sesshomaru'sHead: You think it's that good? Thanks a lot! Hope you read the rest of it when it comes up.  
  
There's part four. Next chapter will focus more on Inuyasha and company. Rest assured, Senjeta has a trap set for them. See ya! -Randall Flagg2 


	5. Serenity's Appearance and Senjeta's Trap

WARNING!!! WARNING!!!! MUST READ THIS BEFORE YOU GO ON TO PART FIVE!!! It should be known that two authors, Hiei'sFireyGurl52890 and Maru-sha have requested that their own characters be put into the story. I don't own either but I have they have given me permission to use them in my story. On your mark... get set... READ!! -Randall Flagg2  
  
I wouldn't listen. I learned how to fight. I opened up my mind to treason. -Ozzy Osbourne  
  
Hey-ho, let's go. -The Ramones  
  
Somehwhere in the forest, a girl sat in a tree. She was young, about nine years old, and had long silver hair. Jutting out of her head wore a pair of white dog ears. She had a brown, furry foxtail and wore pink kimono pants and a matching kimono shirt. On her back, she wore a slash sickle. The girl's name was Serenity and she was growing more and more bored. "I wish there was something to keep me entertained." she muttered. "Being alone in the woods is so boring." Then a scent caught the young hanyou's nose. Serenity sniffed the air and smiled. "Inuyasha is here. Maybe I'll drop by and see what their up to." she giggled. Serenity jumped up and ran off towards the scent.  
  
"Kagome, where the hell are we?" Inuyasha demanded as he stopped to rest.  
  
"How should I know? You said you smelled Shippo and the coyote going this way, so we chose to go in this direction. If we're lost, blame yourself!"  
  
"Oh sure! Blame it on me like always!" the hanyou snorted.  
  
"I only blame you because it is your fault most of the time!"  
  
"Settle down you two." Miroku said, interrupting the squabble. "We must keep ourselves focused on finding Shippo and we must hurry or something could happen to him." At that, the two of them settled down and continued walking on. For a bit it was silent. Then Kagome's angry voice broke the silence.  
  
"If it wasn't for you we wouldn't be doing this!" she growled.  
  
"Oh shut up. I said I was sorry already. Why can't you just let bygones be bygones?!"  
  
"I would if you hadn't made Shippo run away! How do you manage to live with yourself anyway?! Sometimes I think you're as bad as Sesshomaru!" Kagome retorted. Had Inuyasha been anymore short tempered then he already was, he might have slapped her for that. Thankfully he was not and restrained himself from doing something so heinous. Nevertheless for a moment he considered doing it not because of his temper but because of how relieving it would be. He had taken a lot from her just as Shippo had from him. But unlike Shippo, he had no interest in repaying her. After all, when she was mad at him or sat him, it was for a good reason. That was what had held him back. Thank heaven it had. He did not want anymore trouble.  
  
"Kagome?" he asked.  
  
"What?"  
  
"I'm sorry." he said. Kagome froze. Had he just apologized to her? Surely not. Inuyasha never apologized for anything. He was as shameless as shameless could get. Still, she was somehow able to believe that her ears were not deceiving her. Kagome opened her mouth and said two words.  
  
"Thank you." Her voice was so quiet as to be but a mere whisper. All was silent. Then suddenly Inuyasha unsheathed Tetsusaiga.  
  
"What is it?" Sango asked.  
  
"Something's coming. I think it's a coyote!" Inuyasha gasped. Suddenly in front of them, a figure materialized. Inuyasha's fear turned to annoyance at the sight of who it was.  
  
"What do you want Serenity?" Inuyasha growled.  
  
"Just wanted to see you." Serenity said.  
  
"Yeah, and make my life a living hell! Why do you incessantly have to bother me?!"  
  
Serenity pouted. "C'mon Inuyasha! I just wanted to say hi and help you with whatever it is you guys are up too!" At that, Inuyasha smacked her on the head.  
  
"Be quiet! What we're doing is none of your business, so stay out of it!" he scolded.  
  
Serenity rubbed her head and whined, "Hmph! Well if that's the way it's going to be I'll just go then!" Serenity started to walk off when Kagome stopped her.  
  
"Wait Serenity. I don't know who you are, but you should just ignore Inuyasha."  
  
"Oh I do already! I'm his younger sister!" Serenity exclaimed. Kagome widened her eyes. She had no idea Inuyasha had a younger sister! She turned to her friend.  
  
"You never told me you had siblings Inuyasha!"  
  
"We knew all along Kagome." said Miroku. "Serenity has visited us on more then one occasion. She's only come when you're not around though, so it's no surprise you don't know her."  
  
"So what if I didn't tell Kagome about her? Kids as bratty as her shouldn't be mentioned!" At that Serenity started to cry a little bit.  
  
"All I wanted was to be with you guys and this is how I'm greeted?" Serenity sobbed. "Fine then! I don't need you anyway!" She began to storm off but Inuyasha grabbed her up by her tail. "Let me go!" she shouted as she thrashed madly in Inuyasha's grasp. The dog demon hugged her tightly to his shoulder. Serenity struggled for a few minutes, then gave in and hugged back. She was still crying a little bit, but not as much as before.  
  
"I'm sorry. Inuyasha whispered. "I didn't mean it that way."  
  
"I'm alright." she whispered. Inuyasha failed to notice Serenity was reaching into her pocket for something. When her hand came out, she was holding a small firecracker. She struck it against a tree trunk creating a small spark, lighting it. She then proceeded to put it in the shoulder of Inuyasha's kimono shirt. Kagome cringed. She knew what was going to happen next.  
  
POW!! With a mighty pop, the firecracker ignited and Inuyasha was suddenly screaming and jumping around as gunpowder flew out of his shoulder. Serenity fell to the ground laughing her head off. When the flames had died down, Inuyasha grabbed Serenity up by her tail and gave her the iciest glare he had ever given.  
  
Serenity giggled nervously. "It was just a joke Inuyasha! Don't you have a sense of humor?" Instead of answering, Inuyasha drew back his fist to strike her. Serenity cringed and waited for him to start whaling on her, but he did not because at that precise moment, Serenity heard Kagome call out the command Inuyasha dreaded so much and she was suddenly dropped as Inuyasha was hurled into the ground. She got up, dusted herself off and walked behind Kagome. Inuyasha got up and glared bitterly at his younger sister.  
  
"I told you she was a brat Kagome!!" he yelled.  
  
"You wouldn't really have hurt little old me, would you?" Serenity asked cutely.  
  
"I would have if the queen of the wenches hadn't interfered!!!" Inuyasha roared.  
  
"Please!!" Sango interrupted. "May we please put this aside and continue to look for Shippo?" At that, Serenity's ears perked up.  
  
"Why? What happened to Shippo?" Serenity asked.  
  
"Nothing!" Inuyasha said quickly. "We're just... uh, playing hide and seek with him!"  
  
"Don't lie Inuyasha." Kagome said sternly. She kneeled down to Serenity's level. "Serenity, the truth is Inuyasha drove him off. He said some really mean things to him and it got to Shippo, making him run away."  
  
"Like what?" Serenity asked.  
  
"He said Shippo was a burden on us and slowed us down, that he was useless, and that we should have let Hiten and Manten kill him when we first found him. Now we've found out a coyote demon has taken him in and we have to rescue him. That's what's really going on." Serenity looked at Inuyasha with quivering lips. She could not believe Inuyasha had done that to Shippo.  
  
"How could you be so mean Inuyasha?" Serenity whispered shakily. "How could you do that to him?" Serenity broke down and began to sob. Kagome hugged her as she wept. Inuyasha really felt guilty now. He didn't want to make her cry. He sighed and put a hand on her shoulder, but Serenity swatted it away.  
  
"Leave me alone you big jerk!" Serenity wept. "I don't want to have to look at you!" For a few minutes Serenity just stood there weeping into Kagome's shoulder. Then at last her cries became hiccups and whimpers and she stopped. She wiped her eyes with her sleeve and looked at Inuyasha coldly.  
  
"Inuyasha! If we don't find him I'll make you wish you'd never met me!"  
  
"Don't threaten me you little brat!! I can make you wish you had never been born!" Inuyasha growled.  
  
"ENOUGH!!" Sango roared. The demon hunter had finally tired of the endless bickering and had decided somebody needed to stop it. At the tone of Sango's voice, everybody quieted down. "Can we please stop fighting for just one minute and get back to what we were doing?!"  
  
"Sango's right. We need to find Shippo before something happens to him." Kagome walked off in the direction they had been originally been going in, closely followed by the others. Serenity pulled on Inuyasha's kimono shirt.  
  
"I want to come too!" she said.  
  
"No Serenity. It could be dangerous and I don't want you getting hurt. You'll have to stay behind."  
  
Serenity pouted and made her eyes get big and teary. "Please Inuyasha- sama?" she asked.  
  
"No way. Don't think for a minute that your sympathy act will wo-"  
  
"Waaaaaaaaaaahhhhhhh!!!!!!!!!" Serenity broke into hysterical wails. "You don't like me Inuyasha!!!!" she shrieked.  
  
"ALRIGHT!!!!" Inuyasha roared. "We'll take you along for the ride, but if you get hurt, don't say I didn't warn you." The tears stopped immediately.  
  
"Thank you Inuyasha-sama!" Serenity giggled. Inuyasha knew she wasn't really respecting him, but he decided to let her have her way for the time being. They walked off further, Serenity tagging along behind them. None of them were aware of a shadowy figure that flitted away as they left.  
  
Back in the tribe of the coyotes, Shippo was standing in a large hut with Inarki. Also with them was a young coyote demon who seemed to be only a few years older then Shippo. The boy was tall and well muscled. His hair hazel brown hair was tied back in a jaunty ponytail that bounced every time he moved. Both Shippo and the boy held large bamboo poles in their hands.  
  
"What is the purpose of this again?" Shippo asked.  
  
"To teach you how to fight and defend yourself boy." Inarki replied. "Senjeta-sama has requested that you be taught swordsmanship while you live in our village. Rest assured it is for your benefit." Inarki smiled inwardly, knowing that the boy's hatred could be built up by this which would complete phase one of Senjeta's master plan.  
  
The boy smiled at Shippo. "Don't think I'll go easy on you." he sneered. Shippo tensed and raised the pole like a sword. Inarki snapped his fingers. The boy sprinted at Shippo and sent him flying with one savage swing of his weapon. Shippo moaned and got back up.  
  
"Impressive Sato. You are getting better." Inarki remarked.  
  
"Thank you Inarki-san." Sato remarked. Sato charged again with the speed of a charging bull and swung. Shippo blocked the swing, only to be hurled across the room again by the boy's foot. Shippo got up again with a bit more difficulty this time. The kick had hurt quite a bit. He saw Sato rushing at him again. Shippo swung his pole and much to his surprise it connected with the boy's chest. It didn't hurt, but it made Sato take a few steps back. Before Shippo could swing his pole again, Sato kicked out both of his feet and knocked Shippo down again. This time he did not get up, he was in such pain. Above him, Sato grinned.  
  
"I lost again." Shippo thought to himself. "Oh well. I kind of figured I would."  
  
"Of course it was expected runt!" came a voice in the back of his head. "You're weak and stupid and I'm not surprised you lost!" Shippo froze. Was that Inuyasha's voice he had heard? No it couldn't have been. It must have been his mind or something. Then it came again.  
  
"Why do you even bother trying this? You'll just lose again like you always do!" Now Shippo was sure it was Inuyasha's voice he was hearing. He began to feel a dark anger rising in him. All the memories of the numerous insults and countless beatings began to flow through his mind. But instead of hopeless despair, Shippo felt his anger grow greater and greater as the memories flooded his mind. All at once the steel in him rose up and practically screamed at him to stand up and be strong. Then it was swallowed by a burning rage.  
  
"Shut up!" Shippo muttered. "Shut up, shut up, SHUT UP!!!" With a furious scream he jumped to his feet. Sato raised his pole again.  
  
"So you want more? Well then I'll-" But that was all the young coyote got out before Shippo jumped into the air and brought his pole down in a vertical swing. Startled by the boy's change of pace, Sato raised his pole to block it. Shippo's swung with such force that Sato's pole broke like a dry and brittle twig. And that was not the end of it. Shippo's bamboo pole came crashing down on Sato's forehead with a sickening, loud crack. Sato staggered back, then fell down in an unconscious heap. Shippo stood there panting harshly. Inarki's unseen eyes widened behind his cloak. The boy was only trying for the first time and already he had beaten Sato? It couldn't be. Nevertheless, he could not deny the sight before him. Then Inarki smiled. The boy had let his anger take over and then it had been automatic. Inarki knew that pattern well. Calmness became annoyance, annoyance to anger, anger to rage, and finally rage to wrath. Once the cycle was complete, anything could happen.  
  
"Nice going boy." Inarku said. "I didn't think you could win." Shippo did not hear him. He was busy looking at Sato's body. What he saw was not the young coyote demon. He saw Inuyasha lying on the ground, unconscious from the blow with the pole instead of Sato. He was not aware that he was grinning.  
  
"Got you." Shippo muttered through his grin. Inarki smiled even more. The boy had just demonstrated his hatred for Inuyasha. "I got you, you son of a bitch I go you."  
  
A powerful hand fell on Shippo's shoulder. He looked up to see Inarki looking down at him. Before Shippo could ask what he wanted, Inarki spoke.  
  
"Nice job Shippo. I didn't think you could beat him. If I may ask, how did you do it?"  
  
"Well, all my thoughts about Inuyasha just started coming into my head and I felt this surge of energy go through me. That's about it."  
  
"I'm not surprised. It must e difficult living with somebody like that who doesn't think you have the right to be treated fairly and regards you as something to vent on." Inarki remarked. Shippo felt his anger begin to bubble again. He was most certainly not something for people to vent on and he would not allow himself to be one. For a moment a thought ran through his mind, and then it was gone. That thought was "Kill him". Kill who? Inarki? Certainly not. Senjeta? Out of the question. He knew who that thought was directed at though. For a moment he was tempted to carry it out, but he wisely decided against it. Inuyasha was capable of beating him to death with his fingers and fighting him hand to hand would be dangerous. Shippo knew how Inuyasha could be with his hands from personal experience. Still, that thought was a tempting one. Shippo shrugged and walked out of the hut and back to Senjeta's place. He found a bed of hay, lied down, and fell asleep.  
  
Outside the hut, Inarki was busily talking with Senjeta. "You can't really mean that they are coming for us!!" he exclaimed. "It's too early for us! If they get Shippo now, we'll never be able to bring out his full potential and claim the sacred jewel!"  
  
"Calm down Inarki. I'm sure there is a way to stop them. The only question is how." Senjeta replied.  
  
"If you want sir I could destroy them myself."  
  
"No. That would be disastrous. I can't take a chance that my best fighter will be killed. It's not that I don't have confidence in you Inarki. It's just that I don't want to lose you too early in the game. I need you because you can read emotions in the blink of an eye and I'll need that to bring out the boy's full potential. Once we do that, Inuyasha and his friends will be all ours for the taking. And don't forget I promised you a piece of the shikon jewel."  
  
"Very well sir. I will remain here for the time being." Just as he finished speaking, a thought entered his head. That word "time" rang in his mind. Of course! They could use that! Why hadn't he thought of this before?  
  
"May I propose an idea Senjeta-sama?"  
  
"Very well. Tell me your idea." Inarki leaned over and whispered something in Senjeta's ear. The coyote demon began to smile. "That just might work!" he said. "Send the elites of the coyote tribe on it. That should stir things up a bit!"  
  
"Yes Senjeta-sama." Inarki replied. He went off to find the elites.  
  
Back in the forest, Inuyasha and company were still hiking when Inuyasha sniffed the air and brandished his sword. "Who's there?!" he called. In a puff of smoke, a tall cloaked figure stood before them. Inuyasha's dog ears flattened against his head.  
  
"Who are you?!" he demanded.  
  
"My name is Inarki. I come from the coyote tribe of the south under the orders of Senjeta-sama." Inuyasha gasped. He knew that name. It was the name of the coyote demon who had beaten him last night.  
  
"You work for him?! What did you do with Shippo?!"  
  
"Oh we haven't done anything with him yet. I promise you though, he will be very useful to us in the future!" Serenity suddenly jumped forward, brandishing her slash sickle.  
  
"I'll teach you to kidnap one of my friends!" the girl screamed. Serenity swung her weapon, but Inarki jumped to one side. Before Serenity could react, Inarki backhanded her and sent her flying to the ground.  
  
"I admire your courage little girl, but you do not have the fighting experience I have." Serenity rubbed her stinging cheek. As she did, Inarki brought his foot up in a vertical kick and sent her flying back towards Inuyasha and company. Inuyasha picked up his sister and dusted her off.  
  
"Are you okay Serenity?" he asked.  
  
"I'm alright" Serenity moaned. Inuyasha bared his teeth at Inarki and charged, tetsusaiga drawn. Nobody hit his sister and lived to tell about it. Inarki focused his energy and read Inuyasha's emotions. Thundering rage, the urge to kill, and somewhere deep down, slight fear. Inarki smiled. These emotions meant he was acting on instinct and would not be fighting with his brains. Inarki charged energy into his hands, then thrust them outward creating a massive black hole. Inuyasha stopped and tried to flee, but the void began to suck in air and soon he was struggling to escape. Everybody else was too. Inarki smiled and began to speak.  
  
"The vortex I have created is a portal to a different dimension in which time is slowed down. A few seconds in there will be a few hours out here. That will give us all the time we need to bring out Shippo's full potential. The only way to escape is to fight what is inside and I don't think you'll be prepared for what is inside so I guess this is goodbye!" Inarki charged more energy into his hands and threw out an energy ball. The explosion knocked everybody off their feet and sent them flying into the black vortex. Inarki laughed sadistically. The elites would finish them in a matter of minutes, which in this time would be a matter of hours. With another puff of smoke, he vanished.  
  
As the vortex began to disappear, a tall female figure by the name of Kiyashi stepped forward. She had golden eyes and long brown hair. Kiyashi wore a black tank top, camouflage pants, and she had fish nets on her arms. She looked like something out of Kagome's time period. There was an earring in her right ear and she had sharp nails and ca like ears. On her back was a katana. "Strange clothes that future girl had." she remarked. "It's a good thing she wasn't watching her bag when I found these." she said. Kiyashi looked at the portal. She knew what she had to do. "Against the elites of the coyote tribe they'll need all the help they can get." she said. Running as fast as she could, Kiyashi jumped into the portal just as it disappeared.  
  
Review responses  
  
Rushyuo: He is because he is. If it wasn't for that, this would never have happened. Hope you like this chapter.  
  
Nehokia Nazaumi: If you think he's being used now, just wait until Senjeta uses his magic on him. I think you'll be surprised.  
  
Maru-sha: I hope I got Serenity's character well enough. If you post a review, tell me what you think in it. You know, if I did anything wrong or what should be done differently? Just wondering.  
  
That's part five. Next chapter we meet the five elites of the coyote tribe and the battle to save Shippo begins. And even more, Shippo is becoming something much colder then he was before. 


	6. Showdown and Shippo's Transformation

Prepare to meet the elites and see what is happening to Shippo. And who is the mysterious Kiyashi and what does she want? You'll have to read to find out.  
  
Let the battle against evil begin. Here come the regulators. -The Regulators  
  
How shall I fill the final places? How shall I complete the wall? -Pink Floyd  
  
Inuyasha looked around him. All around him and his companions were withered trees and dried up grass. Further ahead was a dried up lake. All around was the stench of death and decay. "Damn it, where are we?" he asked to nobody in particular. "This place is a wasteland! How do we get out of here?"  
  
"I don't know Inuyasha." Miroku said. "But we should try to find a way out of here and fast! That demon Inarki said that every second here could be an hour in the real world! If we spend too much time here, the coyotes might be able to use Shippo for whatever purpose they intend to use him for. From the way Inarki talked about it, I don't think it's anything good."  
  
"I'm scared!" Serenity whined.  
  
"Oh pipe down. There has to be a way out of here somehow!" Inuyasha growled irritably.  
  
"Oh there is a way out! You just don't know it yet!" said a voice. Everybody whirled around to find themselves face to face with five tall figures. Three of them were men, the other two were women. Each of them wore kimono pants and powerful armor. The first male was stocky and wore his hair back in a ponytail. He wore a katana on his belt. The second one was slender and handsome with a large, double bladed axe on his back. His hair was short and spiky. The third one was a female with long curly blonde hair. She had a large scythe in her hand. The fourth was also a female, a bit shorter then the other one, with short, hazel colored hair. Wrapped around her shoulder was a long, snaky bullwhip. The last one was a male jet black hair that went all the way down to his feet. His face looked cunning and mean. In his hands were a set of kodachis.  
  
"Who are you?!" Inuyasha demanded, unsheathing tetsusaiga.  
  
The stocky one stepped forward. "We are the elite fighters of the coyote tribe. Senjeta-sama has sent us to keep you busy until he is ready. My name is Konichi."  
  
The second one stepped forward. "My name is Kaname." They introduced themselves in order.  
  
"Aya!"  
  
"Zanza!"  
  
"Kayami!"  
  
"So your going to fight us eh?" Inuyasha sneered. "Well I look forward to punching your brains in!!" Everybody readied their weapons, even Serenity and Kagome.  
  
"Now, now, lets make this a fair fight." Aya interrupted. "I think instead of a pointless free for all, we should have a one on one fight."  
  
"What do you mean?" Miroku asked.  
  
"I mean we should make things interesting by having one on one matches to the death. The one standing wins. If you can defeat us, the out will open. Fail and your bodies shall rot here for the remainder of eternity." the demoness replied. "Now which one of you would like to go first?"  
  
"I'll go first!" Inuyasha said boldly. He stepped forward. Kaname walked towards him.  
  
"I will take you on." he said. "You should be easy enough."  
  
"Don't underestimate me! I'll make you wish you'd never met me!" Inuyasha charged and the battle was on.  
  
Back in the coyote tribe, an entire day had passed. Whereas twenty four seconds had passed in the time portal, twenty four hours had passed out here. Plenty had been happening during that time period. Shippo had endured an entire day of training and he was quite tired. But something new had happened to him over the course of that day. Over that time, his entire attitude had changed for the worse. He was becoming much colder and his eyes had lost all the innocence and happiness they once held. When he spoke, his voice was always close to being a growl. He no longer seemed happy and playful as he had once before. Now he seemed to be almost as cold as any demon was. Even more, he was becoming much more solitary and was rarely seen unless practicing his training in swordsmanship. Inarki and Senjeta were quite proud of him. Shippo seemed to have a natural ability for it. Already he had defeated four opponents in his training and quite skillfully at that. Shippo did enjoy his training though, not because of how much fun it was, but because of the images it brought into his mind. All of them were images which he had so long wished would one day become true. Images of violence towards Inuyasha, hiten and manten, and just about anybody who had hurt him in his life. For some reason, they always made him fight better when he pictured them. Why? He had no answer but he didn't care. Whatever would let him get better at fighting and please Senjeta. As Shippo sat alone in the hut, the leader of the coyote tribe entered.  
  
"Shippo! Good to see you. How are things going?" Senjeta asked.  
  
"What's it to you?" Shippo growled. Senjeta looked at the boy steadily for a moment, wondering if he had really heard that. "I said what's it to you?" Shippo asked again. For a moment there was silence. Then Senjeta's hand flew out and slapped painfully across the fox's face. Shippo recoiled and clutched at his face with one hand. He looked at Senjeta with a look that showed more surprise then pain. He had not been expecting that.  
  
"Watch your tone around me boy. Understand that was punishment, not abuse that I gave you. Perhaps next time you will think twice about smart mouthing me." The coyote's words fooled him and Shippo nodded. Senjeta smiled at him. "Now tell me how things are going if you would."  
  
"Nothing is new. I beat Sato and again, along with a few others in practice today. Inarki said my potential or whatever is starting to show, so I guess I must be getting good. That's all though." Senjeta ruffled the boy's hair affectionately.  
  
"Keep it up Shippo. You could be the best swordsman in my village if you keep up like this." Senjeta walked out of the hut and grinned. Inarki saying the boy's potential was showing was a good sign. He had known of how Shippo's attitude had changed and was pleased. Only a day or two more and the boy's hatred would truly show. Then came the coyote magic and then... well, Inuyasha would be all his and so would the sacred jewel. Only Senjeta and Inarki knew what coyote magic did. Nobody else was permitted to see it or use it but them. One coyote had seen it and had been executed immediately. Senjeta had to do it. He could not take a chance that the spell would be learned by anybody else besides himself and his right hand man, it was so powerful. But until the time came, Senjeta would continue training the boy until his hatred was brought out. After all, he had been able to read the boy's thoughts when he had struck him. The thought was "Kill him! Kill him god damn you! He's hurt you and you don't have to put up with that anymore so kill him!!!" Senjeta grinned again. That was definitely a good sign. A very good sign in deed.  
  
"Just one or two more days will do it." Senjeta whispered to himself. "Then my spell will be cast and the jewel will be mine!"  
  
Inuyasha charged towards Kaname and swung tetsusaiga with all the force he could muster. Kaname sidestepped almost casually to one side and sent his foot flying out in a roundhouse kick. Inuyasha raised his arm to block it but Kaname was much faster then Inuyasha had anticipated. The kick caught him squarely in the chest and knocked him backwards onto his back. Kaname reached behind him and brought out his axe. Inuyasha opened his eyes just in time to see a large blade descending towards him. He rolled to the side and kicked out with both of his feet. Kaname was knocked to the floor, giving the dog demon enough time to kick him in the side. Kaname jumped to his feet and swung his axe again. Inuyasha blocked it with tetsusaiga and countered the blow with an uppercut to Kaname's jaw. The coyote yowled and went flying onto his back, a bit of blood trailing out of his mouth.  
  
"Keep it up Inuyasha!" Serenity called, jumping up and down in her excitement. "Keep it up! You're beating him!"  
  
"Don't count me out just yet!" Kaname said. He jumped to his feet and threw his axe at him. Inuyasha jumped it and landed on the ground. As he did, pain shot up through his chest. He looked down to see a large gash forming on his chest. How could this be? His adversary had missed entirely!  
  
"Perhaps I should explain how that worked half breed. My weapon is similar to yours in that it is designed for cutting things, but my weapon has one major difference. Whereas your sword can only hit with the blade itself, my blade is specially tempered to that it creates a blast of shredding wing from my axe that goes out in all directions. As you can see, the wind is just as strong as the blade itself, making dodging it very difficult!" Inuyasha was not through yet though. He cracked his fingers and dug his claws into the wound.  
  
"Claws of blood!" Inuyasha commanded. Blades made out of his own blood fired out towards the coyote. Kaname was caught off guard and didn't know how to react. He raised his axe to block the shots, but they cut through the weapon like a knife through butter. One of them slashed his arm, then his leg, and one left a jagged slash across his face. More and more blades flew out, cutting him in more and more places. Kaname screamed. When the onslaught was over, he slumped to the ground, mercifully face down. Inuyasha spat on him. "Teach you to mess with me!" he growled. He looked at the elites.  
  
"How do you like that you mangy scavengers? Who wants to go next?!"  
  
"You're still not done!" Aya called. "Now you really have to fight!" Inuyasha was puzzled. What did she mean by that? He turned around to look at Kaname who much to his surprise, and even more, his horror, was rising from the ground. Inuyasha took one look at the warrior's face and felt fear slowly creep into his body. "How could he survive that?! I hit him with almost every blade!" he wondered.  
  
Kaname did not look pleased. The coyote's eyes were narrow slits, revealing only a bit of color. His face was covered in slash marks, making his face look like a strange death mask. His lips were drawn back from his fanged teeth in a nightmarish snarl. "You have broken my weapon." the demon growled deeply. "You have caused me pain and ruined my weapon! I will not stand for this." Kaname closed his eyes and began to focus his energy. Soon, flames were beginning to radiate out of his body and his eyes glowed red. "I shall not hold back with you anymore!" he roared. Inuyasha tensed. He knew that only the strongest demons could master fire and if Kaname, was a master of fire, the battle would not be easy. Inuyasha charged forward just as Kaname threw a ball of fire at him.  
  
"Iron reaver soul stealer!!" Inuyasha's claws cut through the fireball like paper. Kaname reared back his foot which was already coated in flames and brought it flying upwards in a kick. Inuyasha was hurled back, his kimono burning. Kaname pounced and flung a circle of fireballs towards the hanyou. Inuyasha ducked in between them and threw a punch, but his fist was stopped as a barrier of fire appeared in front of his adversary. He doubled back, giving Kaname enough time to punch him instead, his fist covered in flames.  
  
"Inuyasha!" Kagome called out. "Use the tetsusaiga's sheathe! Maybe it can defend you!" Inuyasha remembered his battle with Hiten and took out the sheathe and held it in front of him like a staff as Kaname shot another fireball at him. Much to his surprise, it blocked the flame! Inuyasha smiled. He knew what to do now. As Kaname threw yet another fireball at him, Inuyasha reared the sheathe back and swung it like a baseball bat. The fireball was bounced back at its user and struck him square in the chest, causing him to burst into flame.  
  
"And I thought that sport didn't come until my time." Kagome sighed.  
  
"Nice going Inuaysha! You defeated him!" Serenity crowed. Inuyasha smiled at her.  
  
"No problem sis. I don't think he'll come back for awhile!"  
  
"Oh no?!" said Kaname as he arose yet again. Inuyasha was really annoyed now. How could he defeat an adversary like this? "It takes a lot more then that to bang me up you know! I hope your ready beca-"  
  
All of a sudden, Kaname screamed as a katana suddenly pierced his back and poked out through the front of his chest. Dangling from it was a piece of his heart. Kaname gagged and coughed up blood. The katana exited his body. Kaname fell to the ground in a lifeless heap. Behind his body stood a tall female figure. She walked over to Inuyasha and company to give them a look at her.  
  
"Who are you?" Inuyasha asked. "Are you from the coyote tribe?"  
  
"I am not with them. My name is Kiyashi and I have a score to settle with the one known as Senjeta." the woman said.  
  
"Aren't those the clothes I lost a week ago?" Kagome asked. Kiyashi grinned sheepishly.  
  
"Sorry, but they looked good and my kimono was ruined, so I didn't really have a choice."  
  
"You could have asked at least!"  
  
"Enough!" Konichi called down. "We do not have time for your babbling! We came here to fight and I would like it if we could continue!"  
  
"Me and Aya will go next." Zanza said. The two women stepped forward, weapons drawn.  
  
Aya pointed at Serenity. "I want to fight you little girl! You look like you would put up a good fight!" Serenity gasped. She knew she could not defeat this woman. She had just seen what the previous fighter was capable of and she had no intention of seeing another, let alone having to face it!  
  
Zanza pointed to Sango. "You're a demon hunter aren't you? Well I've always wondered what a demon hunter is capable of, so why don't you go with the girl? We'll have a two on two match!"  
  
"I accept your challenge. Come Serenity! Let's show them!" Serenity did not move. "Come on Serenity! I know you're a better fighter then you look! If we work together, we can beat them!" Serenity took a few steps forward and stopped.  
  
"I- I don't know if I can. I've never been in a real fight before and-" She didn't finish as Kiyashi's hand fell on her shoulder.  
  
"Have faith little girl. I too can sense something in you that is enormous and it can be brought out. There is always a point in one's life when they must fight, and that time for you is now! Now go and show us what you're made of!" she said. Serenity smiled weakly and walked off to join Sango.  
  
"Don't get killed Serenity! If you do, you'll get the beating of your life when I meet you in heaven!" Inuyasha called. Sango drew her sword and Serenity took out her slash sickle. Zanza took out her whip and Aya brandished her scythe. The battle was on again.  
  
Out in the real world, another two days had passed. Shippo's training with the sword had reached a whole new level during that time period. Senjeta had decided that he was getting too skilled for bamboo poles, so he had given Shippo a real sword to practice with. Shippo enjoyed it greatly. It was all he seemed to enjoy nowadays. All the time the word "kill" rang over and over in his head like a broken record. Whenever he dreamed, he always dreamed of killing Inuyasha. Sometimes he would slip into a daze and dream of it so much that he could actually see and hear it in front of him. Inuyasha screaming in pain, Shippo standing over him with his sword drawn, a bit of blood on it, oh it was so lovely. For some reason he had been obsessing over it for the past two days now. He had also become cold and bitter, and now he rarely took on a pleasant tone when he spoke. In a way he was no longer Shippo. He was... something else. Something dark that he couldn't quite put his finger on. But he did know that he enjoyed being this creature of the dark quite a bit. As he sat there brooding, Inarki entered the room.  
  
"Shippo? Are you in here?"  
  
"Yes. What do you need?"  
  
"Senjeta-sama wanted to see you. It's something important. He also requested that you bring your sword." Shippo got up and retrieved his katana. He walked down the pathway with Inarki to Senjeta's enormous hut. The coyote leader was waiting inside.  
  
"Hello Shippo. It's good to see you." he said warmly.  
  
"Hi." Shippo said flatly. Senjeta smirked inwardly. He could tell by the boy's tone of voice that it was time for the magic at last. His hatred was showing all the time now, which was all the proof he needed that his plan had been a success.  
  
"I've brought you here for a specific purpose. I'm here to make you even stronger then you already are. Tell me something boy. What would you do if you met Inuyasha right about now?" Shippo paused, and then answered.  
  
"I would kill him. I would do it for all the time's he's beaten and neglected me." Shippo growled.  
  
"I imagine if I were in your position, I would do the same boy. How would you like that opportunity?"  
  
"I would love it." Shippo said coldly.  
  
"Good! Because that is exactly what you're going to do!" Senjeta reached into a small pouch on his kimono and came out with a handful of glowing blue sand. "This will give you the strength needed to deal with your tormentor! Once I cast this spell on you, you be able to rid yourself of Inuyasha once and for all!" Shippo grinned. He had waited too long for this opportunity.  
  
"Alright then, get on with it." he said. Senjeta threw the sand on him. For a second, nothing happened. Then a mist began to swirl around the fox child, covering his body. Soon the mist was swirling outside of the hut, covering it as well. Small streaks of lightning ran across the walls of the cloud. Thunder rumbled. Senjeta and Inarki smiled. The coyote magic was working. Soon the sacred jewel would be theirs! After sometime, the mist vanished and revealed the figure that now stood before the two coyotes.  
  
Shippo was much different looking then he had looked before. Everything, even his age had changed. Now instead of looking five years old, he looked to be about nineteen. His face was no longer childlike. It was narrow and handsome and his eyes were much colder. His hair which had originally been tied in a ponytail, now flowed freely down his back all the way down to his hips. He was much taller, about Kagome's height and he was arms and legs were long, slender and well muscled. He now wore a black cloak, much like the kind the grim reaper would wear. Fastened to his cloak was a sash with a katana on it. Senjeta smiled. The coyote magic had been a complete success!  
  
"How do you feel?"  
  
"I feel fabulous." Shippo said. His voice which was once high pitched and childlike was now a cruel bass note.  
  
"I am glad to hear that. I can tell you have grown much stronger then you were before. Perhaps you would like to test your powers?" Shippo extended his palm and activated his fox fire. Instead of a small fireball, what came out of his hand was a tremendous blast of flame which shot through the wall of the hut and slammed into a tree. It exploded in a blast of blue flame and smoke.  
  
"You truly are stronger then before. Now you have the strength to repay Inuyasha."  
  
"Don't even mention his name to me!" Shippo hissed. "I will make sure his name can never be said again!"  
  
"Inarki!" Senjeta commanded. "Take Shippo to the portal where his former friends are playing with my men!"  
  
"Yes Senjeta-sama." Inarki replied. He, Shippo, and his master began to walk towards the forest. Shippo grinned unpleasantly. Today was a good day for revenge.  
  
That's part six people. Next chapter the battle continues and we get to see just how much eviler Shippo has become when he attacks Inuyasha and company! Will they be forced to kill him, or will they find a way to change him back to normal and defeat Senjeta? You'll just have tow wait and see!  
  
Review Responses  
  
Raven Demon: Glad you like your character. Wait till you see what he can do in a fight next chapter.  
  
Maru-sha: I got your character's actions down that well? Alright! Hope you like this chapter.  
  
Rekouri Sentsu: Now you know what happened to Shippo. I think you'll like the next chapter when he attacks Inuyasha.  
  
Lady of the Deadly Dance: You think it's that good? Thanks a lot! Enjoy the rest of the story when it comes!  
  
See you later! -Randall Flagg2 


	7. Shippo's Wrath and Kagome's Love REVISED

WARNING!! WARNING!!! This chapter was pretty shoddily written, so I decided to revise it. Instead of fighting the head honchos in this chapter, they will only fight Shippo. The battles with Senjeta and Inarki will be in the next chapter and then comes the ending. I just wanted to remind you and I hope this does not cause any inconvenience. -Randall Flagg2  
  
But as Warner Brothers, Jon D. MacDonald and Long Island Dragway know so well, there's a Mr. Hyde for every happy Jekyll face, a dark face on the other side of the mirror. The brain behind that face never heard of razors, prayers, or the logic of the universe. You turn the mirror sideways and see your face reflected with a sinister left-hand twist, half mad and half sane. The astronomers call that line between light and dark the terminator. -Charlie Decker, Rage  
  
Become vengeance David. Become... wrath. -John Doe, Seven  
  
Yes there are two paths you can go by, but in the long run there's still time to change the road your on. -Led Zeppelin  
  
Serenity rushed at Aya to attack. She reared her arm back to slash. Aya watched the movements of Serenity's arm carefully, then grabbed it as Serenity's arm descended towards her. "Did you really think your little blade would work against me?" she taunted. Aya's smile became a full fledged snarl and she twisted Serenity's arm almost all the way around. Serenity cried out and stepped back, giving Aya enough time to punch her in the stomach. Serenity felt the air whiff out of her as she clutched her stomach with one hand. Her other hand was held out in front of her.  
  
"Fox fire!" Serenity shouted. A swirling ball of flame suddenly shot out of her hand and struck Aya in the face. The demon screamed, half in pain, half in anger and clutched her face. Already a burn mark was appearing on it. Serenity jumped at her and reared her claws back.  
  
"Iron reaver soul stealer!" Serenity's claws would have cut Aya into pieces, had she not brandished her scythe. Instead of hitting their intended target, her claws struck the blade of Aya's weapon, stopping them. Serenity retracted her arm, allowing Aya to slash at her. Serenity ducked and then jumped as Aya swung low at her. Serenity took out some leaves and tossed them up into the air.  
  
"Multiply!" Serenity commanded. The leaves changed into exact clones of her. Aya was bewildered. Which one was the real one? She growled bitterly and swung at them with her scythe. The first clone turned back into a leaf. She slashed again, getting only a leaf once again.  
  
"Damn you! I'll find you somehow!" As Aya slashed at the clones, the real Serenity took out her slash sickle and cut Aya across the back with it. Aya screamed and whirled around with animal like speed and tried to punch her. Serenity doubled back and readied her claws again.  
  
"I thought you'd be a bit tougher Aya! You're not much for an elite!" Aya snarled angrily at her. Just as Serenity readied her next attack, a sharp pain shot up her back. Serenity turned around to see Zanza standing before her, whip held in one hand.  
  
"Aya was right! You are tougher then you look! But even with your powers you are still no match for us." Zanza dashed behind Serenity with such speed that she seemed to leave after images. Before Serenity could react, she was whipped again. Zanza was running circles around Serenity, whipping her again and again. Aya threw in a couple of punches and kicks as well for spice.  
  
"Argh!!" Serenity screamed as she was hurled into the ground by Zanza's whip. Her luck seemed to have taken a turn for the worse. Serenity moaned in pain. Her body was covered in bruises from Aya and slash marks from the dreaded whip. She didn't know if she could fight anymore.  
  
"I must say again little girl," Zanza taunted, "You are a bit stronger then we thought you would be. You've actually managed to hurt me a few times and you're still alive after all those blows with my whip. I am impressed, really I am, but this has to end!" Zanza stepped over Serenity and raised her whip. "Looks like its lights out for you!" Zanza brought her whip crashing down on Serenity's back. She screamed. Zanza raised her weapon again and brought it whickering down, bringing another scream from Serenity. Just before Zanza could whip her again, Sango's boomerang came flying out of nowhere and struck her in the leg, knocking her back. Sango grabbed Serenity and picked her up.  
  
"Are you ok Serenity?"  
  
"I'm alright, but I'm ticked off!" Serenity exclaimed.  
  
"Just rest for now. I'll take care of her!" Sango drew her katana and dashed forward to engage the coyote. Zanza ducked the blade and slung her whip forward. Sango blocked it with her sword and backed away as another blow sailed her way. Sango tried to attack, but it was hard because Zanza's whip was long and gave her the advantage. From a small pouch on her armor, Sango took out a pair of daggers. With amazing precision, she pitched them forward. One of the daggers missed, but the other struck the opposing woman in her stomach. Zanza yelped and clutched at her stomach. Already she could feel blood rising in the back of her throat. It was time to reveal her special ability.  
  
"Not bad demon hunter. Not bad at all. I admit I'm impressed, but do you think that my whip is my only weapon?"  
  
"What do you mean?"  
  
"I mean that I have only showed you the beginning of my powers. I think you will find my ability to be your worst nightmare!" Zanza concentrated her energy into her body and a yellow aura surrounded her. Thunder rumbled and a large, black cloud appeared above her. Sango looked up just in time to see a bright flash of lightning shoot out of the cloud and strike the female warrior. Her body began to crackle with electricity. Zanza grinned and stretched out her hand. Sango realized what was going to happen just as her opponent shot a ball of electricity out of her hand. Sango sidestepped it, but then felt a blast of agony surge up her body as a thunderbolt struck her from behind. She collapsed to the ground.  
  
"Got you, didn't I?" Zanza said. Her voice was becoming congested with blood, but she didn't mind. "Allow me to explain how my powers work. Like Kaname, I too can control the elements, but instead of fire, I control the thunder, giving me the ability to create lightning bombs. Even if my opponent dodges them, the bombs explode into shrapnel which can catch my opponent from behind. You're weak, I can tell, so I guess this is goodbye!" Zanza threw another thunder bomb. This time is struck Sango squarely in the chest, knocking her over. She tried to block the next blow, but her boomerang did no good against the blast.  
  
"Sango no!!" Miroku shouted. One moment Miroku was charging forward, and the next he stopped as Kayami darted in front of him, kodachis drawn, teeth bared.  
  
"Take one more step and I'll slice you up like sashimi you piece of shit!" he snarled. Miroku jumped forward and swung his staff, but was hurled back when the demon jumped to one side and punched him in the face. Miroku collapsed to the ground.  
  
"Wait your turn monk. You'll get yours soon enough." Kayami walked back to join his comrade.  
  
As Sango was struggling to survive her enemy's barrage of thunder, Serenity was beginning to reveal a hidden power of her own. It had taken longer then she had hoped for, but in the end it was worth it. Serenity's body was glowing a dark red aura and her eyes were glowing like hot coals on a barbecue. "Just a little more and I can help Sango." Serenity focused all of her anger into her demon energy as best as she could. Slowly, her temper flared and her anger began to take over her brain. "A little bit more." she whispered. Suddenly, Serenity's head shot up and a strange smile crossed her face. Her eyes were blood red and there were purple slashes across her face. She was in her full demon form. "Time for some payback." she said aloud.  
  
"What's the matter? Can't the poor demon hunter get up?" Zanza said sarcastically. Sango glared at her defiantly. She knew she was beaten, but she wouldn't give her opponent the satisfaction of seeing her frightened. Zanza glared back.  
  
"Well if that's the way you're going to be I'll-" And suddenly Zanza was torn in half by a certain young girl. Sango looked at Serenity and gasped. She looked like Inuyasha when he went full demon!  
  
"What the-?" Kagome asked.  
  
"Inuyasha, what is going on with her?" Kiyashi inquired.  
  
"I'll tell you what's happened. My sister is in her demon form now. I think this battle is going to be over very soon."  
  
Serenity looked at her claws. They were soaked with blood. Good. That was the way she wanted it. She looked at Aya, the one whom Sango had originally been fighting with and relished the look of fear the spread over her face. Time to kill again. Serenity held out her hand.  
  
"Fox fire!" Serenity commanded. A blue blast of fire flew out of her hand. Aya was suddenly hurled backwards, no longer a demon but a blazing ball of fire. Serenity grinned. It always fun like this. She turned towards her friends and stared at them as if they were her enemy's. Then with a roar, she charged.  
  
"She's gunning for us! What do we do?!" Kiyashi screamed. Inuyasha drew back his fist and waited for Serenity to get within a fair distance of him. Just as she reared her claws back to strike, he stepped forward and punched her in the face, knocking her down. Serenity fell to the ground in a heap. For some time, she didn't move. Then at last the purple streaks on her face disappeared and her eyes went back to a violet color. She looked up at Inuyasha.  
  
"Did I get them?" she asked wearily.  
  
"Yeah you got them Serenity. You got them good." Serenity suddenly began to cry. "What's wrong?" Inuyasha asked.  
  
"I'm sorry Inuyasha! I was just so scared before I transformed! And now I've killed them and-and-" Serenity broke down completely and wailed. Kiyashi hugged her close to her chest, muffling her loud cries.  
  
"It's alright little one. You're alright now. There is no reason to cry. You've fought the good fight and you can rest." Serenity continued bawling. Kiyashi rubbed her back to calm her.  
  
"You're so motherly. What's the deal?" Miroku said.  
  
"I had children once. I raised them and I took care of them with my late husband. Then-" Kiyashi broke off in mid sentence and looked down at the ground balefully.  
  
"And?"  
  
"Oh never mind. That's an entirely different story." she almost whispered. Serenity's cries had ceased, but she was trembling and sniffling violently. She looked up at Kiyashi with red eyes.  
  
"I'm sorry Kiyashi-san. I don't mean to be crying. I was just frightened for Sango." Serenity whispered. Kiyashi let her up and patted her head.  
  
"It's alright Serenity. You beat them and that's that."  
  
Further ahead the remaining coyotes, Konichi and Kayami stared at their enemies in disbelief. First Kaname had been killed, now Aya and Zanza were gone! It was rare that they ran into such opposition. "What do you think?" Konichi asked. "Would you like to go next Kayami?"  
  
Kayami took out his kodachis. "I would be honored Konichi. I think I'll take that monk there!" he said, pointing towards Miroku. He stepped forward. "What about it monk?! Would you like to challenge me?"  
  
Miroku rolled up his sleeves and readied his staff. "I accept your challenge." he said confidently. Just before either competitor could attack, something that looked like a hole appeared in the sky. Three figures descended from it. Two of them Inuyasha recognized, but the third he did not. This unknown figure was unlike anything Inuyasha had seen before. This unknown apparition suddenly pointed both of its hands downwards charged energy into them. A pair of gigantic fireballs shot out, directly towards the remaining coyotes. There was a massive explosion of blue fire, forcing the hanyou to cover his eyes. When the brightness died down, he saw two large craters where the two demons were once standing.  
  
"Hello. We meet again Inuyasha." Senjeta said.  
  
"Where is Shippo?! What have you done to him?!" Inuyasha roared.  
  
Senjeta laughed. "Smell the air half breed. I think you will find he is very close by!" Inuyasha sniffed the air and gasped. He could smell Shippo's scent in the air, but something was different about it. It was much older, far stronger then it was before, and it was far more evil. He looked at the three figures and realized with horror that the smell was coming from the unknown third figure! A wave of realization flooded over him and he understood at once what had happened.  
  
"Shippo? Is that you?"  
  
"Yes, it's me. Are you surprised? After Senjeta took me in, he made me much stronger then I was before."  
  
"But why? Why would you let him turn you into this-this- thing of evil?" Inuyasha stammered.  
  
"Because I'm fed up with you and the rest of you!" Shippo snarled. "You've always said I'm weak and a burden to you and all sorts of other things! Did you think I would take it forever?! Well I decided I don't need trash like you in my life and I'm here for revenge!"  
  
"That's right boy. Show him what you are made of!" Senjeta said. Everybody was shocked. They didn't know how Senjeta had transformed Shippo into this, but they knew that the fox they had known and loved was mad as hell and there was no stopping him now. They would have to fight him.  
  
"Shippo I'm not going to fight with you." Inuyasha said. "As much as I'd like to, I refuse to fight you."  
  
"Hmph! I always knew you were a coward at heart! So many times you have hurt me, and now your given a golden opportunity and you're backing down. I am surprised at you." Shippo scowled.  
  
"I am not afraid! I just don't wish to fight with you! The real Shippo would never do this and let some fucking corpse gobbling bucket of shit like Senjeta manipulate him and trick him! He would have come back to us!" Inuyasha ducked out of the way as a blast of fox fire came sailing his way, creating a large crater in the ground.  
  
"You can't run away you know! The only way to escape here is to fight your way out and your new opponent happens to be me!"  
  
Inuyasha sighed and unsheathed tetsusaiga. "Alright then. If that is your choice, then I'll fight you!" He began to walk forward, only to be stopped by Kagome.  
  
"No Inuyasha! I won't let you go through with this!"  
  
"Move it Kagome! This is the only way I can save us! If you want to be stuck here forever, then be my guest!"  
  
"If you want to get to him you'll have to go through me first! I'll probably lose but-" Kagome didn't finish as Shippo snuck up behind her and backhanded her to the ground.  
  
"Bitch!" Shippo spat. "Stay out of this! This is between him and me!" Shippo paused for a moment, then threw a handful of leaves at Inuyasha. The dog demon dodged most of them, but a few of them cut through his kimono as if they were razor blades. Shippo jumped forward and bathed his fist in fox fire. Before Inuyasha could move, Shippo punched him directly in the stomach. Inuyasha doubled over and Shippo threw another leaf, this one directed at his head. Inuyasha saw it coming and blocked it with his hand. The leaf however was much sharper then it looked and pierced his hand. Inuyasha winced and threw a right hook, nailing the fox in the stomach. He jumped forward and punched Shippo everywhere he could.  
  
"Stop it Inuyasha!" Kagome called. She ran forward, only to be grabbed by Kiyashi. "Let go of me!" she screeched.  
  
"Don't be foolish. Shippo will surely kill you if you get in his way again. Is that what you want?"  
  
"But I can't let Inuyasha kill him! I just can't!" Kagome wrenched free of the cat demon's grasp and ran forward, but Kiyashi was quick and tackled her to the ground.  
  
"I'm sorry I have to do this Kagome, but it's the only way I can keep you safe!" Kagome buried her face in her arms and began to sob. She just couldn't let this happen. She just couldn't.  
  
Inuyasha continued punching Shippo as hard as he could. Then suddenly the fox's body was bathed in flame, forcing him back. Shippo threw seven leaves into the air. "Multiply!" he commanded. Seven clones of himself appeared. Inuyasha watched in horror as the clones stretched out their hands. Each of them threw out a ball of flame. Inuyasha tried to dodge, but could not and he was enveloped in fire. Shippo jumped up and delivered a savage kick to the hanyou's face. Inuyasha clutched at his face and fell back down.  
  
"Time for the big stuff." Inuyasha thought. As Shippo rushed at him again, Inuyasha swung tetsusaiga at him. The swing would have cleaved the kitsune in half, but he saw it coming and dodged it. Shippo grinned. Finally his opponent was truly fighting him.  
  
"So that's how you want to play the game? Fine then! I've been practicing swordsmanship myself!" Shippo unsheathed his katana and charged. The air was filled with the sound of clashing steel. Inuyasha ducked Shippo's horizontal slash and jabbed tetsusaiga at his adversary. Shippo sidestepped it and made a vertical swing at him. Inuyasha grabbed the katana and shoved it to one side. He sprang up and slammed his fist into Shippo's face, knocking the fox down.  
  
Kagome could stand no more. Sobbing she shoved herself upwards as hard as she could. Kiyashi fell off. Before she could restrain her again, Kagome took out her bow and arrows and pointed them at her. "Take one more step and I'll kill you!" she said. Kiyashi backed away. Kagome was going to find a way to get Shippo back to normal if it killed her. She advanced on the two fighters.  
  
"Kagome no! Get back or he'll kill you!" Inuyasha said, momentarily distracted by the approaching miko. That was all the time Shippo needed. With a mighty thrust of his arm, he plunged his katana deeply into Inuyasha's chest. Inuyasha screamed and fell to the ground. Shippo stood over him grinning.  
  
"Shippo," Inuyasha asked weakly. "What's happened to you? You weren't like this before."  
  
"As if I don't know that. You think I wanted to remain the way I was? Weak and foolish, unable to defend myself? Well I'm a whole new person now. Thanks to Senjeta, I have become what I have always dreamed of being!" Shippo raised his sword and pointed it downwards like a cross. "Now it's time to finish you off!" Shippo plunged his sword downwards into Inuyasha's stomach, bringing a scream out of the hanyou's throat. Shippo smiled and pulled his katana out. It was stained with crimson color.  
  
"How does it feel Inuyasha? Does it hurt? I hope it hurts!" He readied his sword again and stabbed his victim again. Inuyasha struggled to get up, but could not he was in so much pain. Shippo stabbed him again in the shoulder.  
  
Inuyasha looked up at Shippo with saddened eyes. "Why have you let him deceive you? Why did you let him turn you into this monster?" he asked sadly, as if he were on the verge of tears.  
  
"I didn't let him deceive me. You made me do it. It was because of you that I am what I am. It was because of your words that I ran away and joined the coyote tribe. It was all because of you that I let him turn me into what I am now. If you want to blame somebody, blame yourself." Shippo saif coldly. His blade came down and pierced Inuyasha's other shoulder. He raised his sword and slashed Inuyasha across the chest. He slashed him in many other areas, perhaps too many to count. The ankle, the leg, the arm, the stomach, once across the face, so many places. One could only speculate how Inuyasha could have survived it all.  
  
"Please stop." Inuyasha said weakly. "I can't take it anymore."  
  
"Shut up." Shippo growled. "I'm going to repay you for everything you've done to me." Shippo lost interest in using his sword and began to kick Inuyasha around the ground like a living soccer ball. All the while he was grinning and muttering about how much fun he was having. He was having such a good time he was not aware that Inuyasha was crying.  
  
"I can't believe they did this to him." Inuyasha mentally sobbed. "He's right. This is my fault. If I hadn't said those things to him this would never have happened." Inuyasha felt tears of remorse ooze out of his eyes. Soon enough, watery gasps were escaping his mouth as Shippo kicked him again and again, enjoying every moment of it.  
  
"Inuyasha!" Serenity cried. Serenity ran forward, but Miroku grabbed her and restrained her.  
  
"You must not go. He will surely kill you if you try to stop him!"  
  
"Let go of me!" Serenity raged. "I have to help him! I can't let him suffer like this!" Serenity struggled, but it was no use. At last she bit down on Miroku's hand, forcing him to let her go. Just as she started to run forward again, Miroku swung his staff and brought it down squarely on her head. The hanyou girl cried out and sunk to the ground. Miroku kneeled down to her level.  
  
"Serenity please, listen to me! I'm sorry I had to do that, but I can't let you go and get yourself killed! Please understand that I am only trying to protect you. Now please, be wise and keep away from them." Serenity looked from Inuyasha, to Miroku, and back again. She lowered her head and her body shook. Her mouth opened, but nothing came out. Then Serenity looked up at the monk and started to wail. Miroku hugged her tightly. Almost immediately he felt his robes dampen. He couldn't blame her though. Her brother was suffering and she was being forced to watch it. That would bring anybody to tears. He knew that there wasn't much they could do and that things looked bleak. For now, they would simply have to endure.  
  
As Serenity's cries rang out in the wasteland air, Kagome was still walking towards the fox she had known and loved. She knew Inuyasha would not last much longer if this kept up and she had to do something about it. She ran at Shippo and jumped in front of him. The fox stopped his attack and stared at her. Now they were just standing there like a pair of gunfighters in a movie. Then Shippo drew back his fist and struck her in the face. Kagome recoiled, but did not back down.  
  
"Get out of my way girl! If you get out of my way I'll be merciful on you when I finish with him." She did not obey. Shippo charged fox fire into his hands, only to be stopped as Miroku jumped forward and brought his staff down in a vertical swing on his head.  
  
"Leave Kagome! I'll take him!"  
  
"Miroku no! I won't let you kill him!" Kagome said, taking out her bow again.  
  
"I'm sorry Kagome but we have no other choice!" Miroku however had forgotten to watch his back as Shippo punched him hard in the back, knocking him down. Miroku jumped back to his feet and swung his staff. Shippo grabbed it and pushed it to the side. Enraged at the monk's interference, Shippo threw a ball of flame at him. Miroku flung out a handful of spirit ward scrolls to block the flame and charged. He managed to get in two punches and then was thrown back by Shippo's own punch. The fox demon charged and threw more fireballs at Miroku. He twirled his staff in front of him like a baton and blocked the shots, but Shippo darted behind him and kicked him in the back of the head.  
  
"Not bad monk. Not bad at all. But even you are no match for me!" Shippo grabbed a handful of leaves from his pocket and flung them at his adversary. Due to Shippo's enhanced powers they were as sharp as razor blades. Miroku winced as some of the leaves cut him. He dug into his robe and threw a spell scroll at Shippo. It latched onto Shippo and paralyzed him. Seeing an opportunity, Miroku jumped forward and began to batter Shippo with blow after merciless blow.  
  
"Stop it Miroku! Please, just stop it!" Miroku did not listen and continued to hammer Shippo with his staff. Then suddenly, Shippo tore the scroll off and flung it to the side. Miroku stopped in shock. Nobody had ever stopped the effect of his scrolls before! He was so startled that he failed to dodge Shippo's next blow. Shippo's fist came flying forward and struck him in the stomach with bone shattering force. Miroku felt the air whiff out of him and he sunk to the ground. Shippo laughed.  
  
"Nice try monk, but you have to do better then that! My powers are far greater now then they were before!" Shippo kicked Miroku in the face and sent him to the ground. He turned to Kagome. "You're still here girl?! I told you to go away!"  
  
"No." Kagome said. "I want to heal you Shippo. I don't know what Senjeta has done to you, but I know there's still some of the old you left in there!" Snarling, Shippo punched Kagome in the face, bloodying her nose.  
  
"I told you to stay out of it! Are you too stupid to understand that?!" Kagome smiled weakly at him and he punched her in the stomach. It hurt tremendously, both physically and emotionally, but Kagome wouldn't lose here.  
  
"I am telling you for the last time bitch, you will stay out of it!!" Shippo punched her twice more and stopped, waiting for her to go back. She did not. Instead she staggered forward and fell on him, hugging him. Shippo shoved her off with a snarl, but she just did it again. Before he could strike her again, he felt the shoulder of his cloak dampen. Then he could hear sobs.  
  
"Please Shippo!" Kagome wept. "I know your still inside there somewhere! Don't let Senjeta fool you! You are not what you think you are! You are not a killing machine as Senjeta makes you think! You-" Then she felt Shippo's claws dig into her back. She moaned, but did not let go.  
  
"What are you doing?! Stop that this instant!" Senjeta roared. He had good reason to yell like that. Love was after all, the only thing that could break the spell he had cast. He had come too far, and he was not going to lose his one chance to get the sacred jewel now! He began to advance forward when Inarki put a hand on his shoulder.  
  
"How dare you stop me?! Let go of me or I'll kill you!" the coyote leader snarled. Inaraki shook his head gravely.  
  
"No Senjeta-sama. You must not interfere. Even if she does break the curse, they are still no match for us!" Senjeta contemplated tearing Inarki's head off right then and there, but then he decided not too. Inarki was right after all.  
  
"Alright then. We'll see how things work out. I doubt she'll do as you think she will." he said. He sat down on the ground and watched the scene unfold.  
  
Shippo raised his claws to strike her again. He would not let this girl interfere. "Let go of me now or I'll tear your heart out!" he hissed.  
  
"No." Kagome sobbed. "I won't let you go. You can still go back to being the Shippo I knew and loved. There is still time for you to save yourself." Suddenly, something happened. Kagome's body was suddenly surrounded by a pink and red aura. Shippo's body tensed. Something was happening to him. But what was it? He did not know. With a scream, he struggled to free himself but could not. Something besides the girl was holding him back.  
  
"I'm going to heal you Shippo." Kagome whispered. "I'm going to heal you and help you remember who you are." Shippo struggled even more, but then he relaxed. A memory of something forgotten was coming back.  
  
*FLASHBACK*  
  
"How exactly do you play this game Kagome?" Shippo asked.  
  
"It's quite simple really. I deal you and myself two cards, one face down, and the other face up. The idea of the game is to get as close as you can to twenty one or get twenty one without going any higher." Kagome explained. "Be careful though. If you go over twenty one or tie the dealer, you lose." Shippo nodded. This game seemed easy enough. He looked at his cards and saw he had a total of ten.  
  
"Kagome? What do I do if my cards aren't high enough?" he asked.  
  
"Then you ask for another card." Shippo did so and looked at the new card. It was a ten. He smiled.  
  
"What do I do when I don't want anymore cards Kagome?"  
  
"Then just say you stand with the cards you have now." Shippo set his cards down and waited for Kagome to decide what to do.  
  
"I think I'll stand with what I have." she said. "Show me your cards Shippo." Shippo set down his cards. Kagome smiled. "I got nineteen. I lose this time Shippo. You beat me by one point." Shippo giggled playfully and Kagome hugged him.  
  
"Can we play again Kagome?" Shippo asked.  
  
"Some other time Shippo. It's getting late. I'll play with you again tomorrow." Shippo pouted slightly, but went along with what she said. He was just about to drift off to sleep when Kagome tugged lightly on his bushy tail.  
  
"Hold on a second Shippo. I have a couple of presents for you." Kagome dug into her bag and came out with bar of chocolate and some light blue clothes. Shippo took the chocolate immediately, but stared curiously at the clothing Kagome had brought with her.  
  
"What are those?" Shippo asked as he bit into the chocolate bar.  
  
"They're pajamas Shippo. People wear them to bed in their sleep in my time. I figured I might get you a different gift besides chocolate. Why don't you try them on?" Shippo took the clothes and went behind a bush to change. When he came out he was dressed in a pair of light blue two piece pajamas. He blushed a bit, feeling a bit embarrassed in this strange clothing, but that feeling left him when he saw Kagome smiling warmly at him.  
  
"Thank you." Shippo said politely. Kagome smiled and lay down in her sleeping bag. Shippo curled up beside her and fell asleep. He couldn't wait for tomorrow.  
  
*END FLASHBACK*  
  
Shippo paused. A feeling he had forgotten began to creep over him. How could he have forgotten that day? That had been one of the happiest days of his life. The warm sun, the card game, the presents she had given him, and pretty much the entire day. He felt tears begin to form in his eyes as he remembered all the good times he had shared with Kagome and the others. The time she had played a game called chess with him, the many times she had given him candy, and so many other things that he had forgotten during the time he had spent with Senjeta. He realized at once what a fool he had been. Shippo felt that feeling again and realized what it was. It was love, the feeling he had forgotten. His body glowed a dark lavender color, then mist began to swirl around his body. Kagome suddenly felt herself leaning on thin air and she almost fell over. She quickly balanced herself and stood up. When the mist cleared, Kagome found herself looking down at a small child in dark green kimono pants, a fuzzy vest, and a kimono shirt with leaves on it. He was unconscious. She hugged Shippo to her chest and began to sob again. "Your free." she whispered and kissed his forehead. "Your free."  
  
Review Responses  
  
Rekouri Sentusu: Your right, Inuyasha did take a beating! Hope this chapter was to your liking.  
  
Maru-sha: I hope I got Serenity's attacks down. And I figured since she is Inuyasha's little sister, she should have a full demon form as well. Hope you don't mind that. 


	8. Senjeta and Inarki's End

This is the second to last chapter. I know it's just a continuation of chapter seven, but once again I felt it was not written well and decided to make the final battle longer. Sorry, but this is the way I want it. Read this only of you felt chapter seven was not good enough originally. Otherwise go to the final chapter. Enjoy! -Randall Flagg2  
  
Brace yourself! It's going to get ugly! -Sailor Mercury, Sailor Moon  
  
Kagome staggered back to where Sango and Kiyashi were standing, cradling Shippo in her arms. She was relieved that he was back to normal. She didn't know what she would do if they had been forced to kill him. But in the end, her love had made the difference and saved him. As she walked towards her friends, she let out one last sob and gave the fox to Sango.  
  
"Here." Kagome said weakly. "Take care of him. I don't want him getting hurt."  
  
"Alright." the demon hunter said. "I'll protect him." In her arms, Shippo stirred slightly and moaned. His eyes scrunched up for a moment, then relaxed. Sango stroked his head. "Poor thing. He looks like he's having a nightmare."  
  
"Can you blame him after all he's been through?" Kagome asked. Her thoughts were interrupted as she felt somebody hugging her leg. She looked down to see Serenity.  
  
"Thank you so much Kagome-san! It's good to have Shippo back with us!" she exclaimed.  
  
"I'm glad too Serenity-chan. Now we can head home."  
  
"You're not going home without me!" said a familiar voice. They turned to see Inuyasha standing up. He was bloody and his kimono was torn in various places, but he seemed to be alright. "What happened to Shippo?" he asked.  
  
"I healed him. He's back to normal now." Kagome said.  
  
"Kagome, I just want to tell you I'm sorry for what I said to him. I don't know why I did it. I guess I was just mad and needed somebody to take it out on."  
  
"It's alright Inuyasha. When he wakes up you should apologize to him."  
  
"I will Kagome. I promise I will."  
  
"Let us be going then. We must continue our search for the sacred jewel." Miroku said, getting up from the ground. They started to walk off, but the thundering voice of Senjeta stopped them.  
  
"Where do you think your going?!" the coyote bellowed. "We aren't done here yet! Aren't you forgetting about us?!"  
  
Inuyasha flexed his claws. "Why don't you guys just give up? You lose, end of story. Can't you accept that?" he demanded.  
  
"Oh I'm so sorry, but you have no choice but to fight us." Inarki replied. "You see, I told you the only way to escape would be to fight whatever was inside. And since me and my master are still standing, you have no choice but to fight us to escape. Now which one of you would like to go first?"  
  
"I'll go." Kiyashi said. "I have a score to settle with you and your master."  
  
"Very well then woman, I will take you on." Inarki said, stepping forward. "You still haven't forgotten about your children I see!" Kiyashi bared her teeth and readied her katana. These two had taken something dear from her and they would pay with their lives for it.  
  
"Be careful Kiyashi! You don't know what kind of powers he has!" Kagome called. Kiyashi raised her sword and charged.  
  
"Good, I can sense your emotions." Inarki said mentally. "You're intensely angry, but you're also nervous. I can tell. That will make it all the more easy for me." As Kiyashi swung her sword, Inarki ducked to one side and kicked out at her, knocking her back. With an angry snarl, Kiyashi pointed her sword forwards like a spear and charged. Inarki sidestepped again and grabbed the blade with one of his hands. Amazingly no cut marks appeared on his hand.  
  
"You have improved a bit since our last fight I see. Well that will make it all the more fun for me!" Inarki charged energy into his hands. Soon a bright energy ball appeared in his hands. Kiyashi knew what was coming and jumped into the air as the ball of energy was flung at her. It hit the ground instead, creating a massive explosion. Kiyashi saw her opportunity and brought her sword down on her opponent. It shredded Inarki's cloak, only to reveal something shocking. Where his arm should have been, there was absolutely nothing at all!  
  
"Oh maybe I forgot to tell you something! I'm only half demon! The other half of me is of a ghost, and it makes me very difficult to kill!" he exclaimed. Kiyashi gasped. She knew that ghosts were much more dangerous then demons, but she had never seen one until now. Ghosts, unlike demons, could not be defeated in conventional ways. To fight them sometimes meant to risk your own soul, which was why most people simply avoided apparitions. But now there was no turning back. She knew that if Inarki was half ghost, he would be very difficult to damage. But nothing was completely invincible. Everything had to have a weakness. Kiyashi raised her sword and slashed him again, taking another piece of Inarki's cloak.  
  
"Damn you!" she hissed. "I don't know if I can win, but if there is a way to beat you I'll find it!" Just as she started to raise her sword, something happened. Inarki's body glowed red and his body suddenly seemed to melt. Even stranger, it began to reform itself. Kiyashi backed away. She had only enough time to realize that Inarki's body was turning into a large axe just before he chopped at her. She blocked him with her sword, but then felt an excruciating bolt of pain jolt up her leg as his blade shaped body sliced into her ankle. With a scream she doubled over and clutched at her leg.  
  
"Oh yes, I have one more ability. Being half ghost, I can reshape any part of my body into whatever I want. In other words it makes me one giant weapon!" Inarki went back to his normal form and turned his hand into a sword and slashed. Kiyashi jerked back just enough so that she avoided getting split in half, but in turn received a long, jagged slash across her stomach. It wasn't deep enough to pierce her stomach or spill out her vital organs, but it was still deep. The cat demon gave out a harsh grunt and jabbed her sword at Inarki. Inarki's body reformed into a shield and blocked the blow. Kiayhi moaned. How could she defeat an opponent like this?  
  
"I'm surprised you've survived for this long. Normally, my opponents would have died or given up by now, but I guess that stuff isn't in you! Well I can fix that!" Inarki reshaped his hand so it resembled a drill and extended it forward. His arm pierced Kiyashi's chest and stopped just an inch away from her heart.  
  
"I wouldn't move if I were you dear. If I so much as flex the muscles in my arm, I can pierce your heart and kill you. So if you are wise, you'll just stay still." Kiyashi growled deeply at him. "Yes, that's right, bare your teeth at me like an animal. Typical for one like yourself." Suddenly, Kiyashi reached up and seized Inarki's arm. With a mighty shove, she forced his arm out of her chest. Kiyashi got up, bleeding profusely. Even in this state, she would not give up.  
  
"Well, it seems that you are too stupid to know when you're beaten! I can fix that!" Inarki's chest rippled, and then four spikes shot out of it. Much to his surprise, Kiyashi grabbed them and stopped them.  
  
"I'm going to kill you." she whispered. "You had better know I'm going to kill you! I'm going to do it for my children. The one's whose life you stole. I'm going to do it for deceiving Shippo and turning him into a killing machine! I'm going to do it for everything you've done up to now!"  
  
Inarki laughed viciously. "You kill me? That's rich! Only my master has the power to kill me! But I guess you'll just have to learn that the hard way!" Inarki shape shifted into a spear and flew at her. Kiyashi waited until the last second, then swung her sword in a horizontal swing, cleaving him in half. Inarki transformed back into his normal form. Had he had a face, his expression would be one of shock right now.  
  
"How can you have done that?!" he shouted. "Nobody but my master has ever succeeded in hurting me! How can you have ruined me in my transformed state?!" She did not answer. Only glared and readied her sword again. "Of course!" Inarki thought. "It's the power of love! When she's fighting me without thinking of her loved ones, she has no power over me! But when her heart is put into it, she gains the strength to beat me! How could I have missed this?!" Kiyashi charged and swung her sword again, cleaving off part of his hood. Inarki screamed and fell on his back, clutching at where his face should have been. Kiyashi jumped over him and pointed her sword downwards and plunged it into his chest. Inarki screamed again, and then smoke began to billow up from his cloak. Then at last, his cloak fell limply to the ground. There was nothing left of him in it.  
  
Kiyashi re-sheathed her sword and walked back to her friends. "Nice going Kiyashi!" Serenity said. "How did you find a way to hurt him?"  
  
"Well-" she began. Then she stopped in mid sentence. As she began to speak those memories of her children came back. This horrible-  
  
(Mama who are they mama I'm scared oh who are they mama help us they got him oh please help us what is happening no oh no please let me go let me go I don't)  
  
-memories were too much to bear. Kiyashi turned away. "I don't know how. I guess I just don't know my own strength." Serenity frowned, but decided not to ask anymore. Something in the cat's voice was secretly whispering to Serenity that if she knew what was good for her, she would not ask anymore on this subject. So Serenity quieted down and decided not to converse on it anymore.  
  
Across from them, Senjeta had finally reached his breaking point. First his elites had failed him, then Shippo had been turned back to his normal form again, and now Inarki had been defeated!! This could not be! His plan for getting the sacred jewel was ruined! Senjeta's lips wrinkled back around his teeth and a deep growl rose out of his chest. "My right hand man has been struck down. I will not let this pass!" With blinding speed he charged towards his adversaries and stopped in front of them. "You've still got to fight me you know!" he shouted.  
  
Inuyasha rolled up his sleeves and turned to Miroku. "What do you say Miroku? Do you still have enough stamina for one more fight?!"  
  
"Don't even think about asking for assistance Inuyasha! I want to fight you one on one!"  
  
"Fine then! I accept your challenge!" He readied tetsusaiga.  
  
"Be careful Inuyasha!" Kagome called. "He has six jewel fragments in him!"  
  
"Six eh? That would explain why I had so much trouble fighting you last time!" With a roar, he charged. The final battle was on.  
  
Senjeta grabbed Inuyasha's fang just as he had before in their previous bout. Inuyasha jumped up and kicked out with both of his feet, planting them squarely in the coyote's chest. Senjeta fell back and countered with a powerful backhand that knocked Inuyasha down. The coyote jumped into the air and brought his fist slamming into Inuyasha's stomach. The hanyou jumped up in a rage and threw blood claws at Senjeta. He blocked them with his hands and charged again. Inuyasha grabbed Senjeta by his arm as he passed by and slung him onto the floor like a sack of laundry. With speed that Koga would have envied, Senjeta got to his feet and scooped up a handful of dirt.  
  
"What? Your going to throw dirt at me? Pretty childish if you ask me!" Inuyasha exclaimed.  
  
"No exactly half breed! Because of the jewels in my body, I can make these become much more then just dirt!" He flung them at Inuyasha and as the dirt pieces flew at him, they sharpened into points like so many daggers. Inuyasha tried to dodge, but ended up getting sliced by the blades. Senjeta saw his opportunity and kicked his adversary in the stomach. As Inuyasha doubled over, he jumped forward a small bit and slashed with his claws. Senjeta tried to block it and received five slashes across his arm for his troubles. With a snarl, Senjeta punched Inuyasha in the face. Inuyasha brought tetsusaiga in an upwards swing and cut Senjeta across the face. He clapped his hand to his face and backed away screaming. Inuyasha dug into his skin again and flung more blades of blood at him. Senjeta's arms and legs were cut over and over again by the passing storm of blades. Snarling like a rabid animal, Senjeta charged through the blades and dug his arm into the ground again. When it came back out again, it was covered in dirt. With amazing speed, it formed into a sword around his arm. Senjeta drew back his arm and jabbed it at Inuyasha. He grabbed the blade with one hand and brought his claws up in an upwards slash. Senjeta screamed as Inuyasha's claws dug into his face and tore out one of his eyes. Inuyasha grinned. This wasn't as hard as before.  
  
"Come on you mangy corpse eater! I was hoping for something a little more challenging!" Inuyasha taunted. Much to his surprise, Senjeta smirked.  
  
"You think this is the maximum level of my power?" he asked. "If you think that, then you are in for a rude awakening. I still have a few more tricks up my sleeve." Senjeta's eyes glowed red and sand began to erupt from the ground all around him. Soon the sand began to swirl, turning it into a giant dust devil. "You see, coyotes such as myself have always had the ability to control the land and our natural surroundings. Should we have a sacred jewel fragment as well, our abilities become ten times more dangerous. As you can see, my abilities are quite powerful from all the shards I collected. Now let's see how you fare against me!" Senjeta pointed and the mini twister spun towards Inuyasha. He jumped to the side, but was hurled across the battle field as the twister flew past him. He landed in a heap.  
  
"If it can do that just by passing by me, I'd better avoid being hit directly!" he thought. Inuyasha jumped to his feet and jumped as another twister sailed his way. He sprinted forward, darting from side to side as more dust devils sailed his way. Inuyasha was rapidly closing in on his adversary. He was almost within four feet of Senjeta, when he suddenly disappeared. Inuyasha looked behind himself just in time to see the coyote's foot come flying forward and kick him in the side of the head. Inuyasha collapsed to the ground. Senjeta dug his fist into the ground and dug his arm into the ground again, allowing him to create another sword. He drew back his arm to strike when something flew past him. He turned around just in time to see a blur of purple fly past him. He whirled towards Inuyasha's comrades. The girl who had foiled his plan was standing in front of them, bow drawn.  
  
"How can she do that? That was a sacred arrow! The only way she could do such a thing would be if she was the reincarnation of a priestess! Could she be so?" he wondered, unaware that Inuyasha was raising tetsusaiga behind him. He saw the dog demon's shadow just as he started to swing. He narrowly avoided it.  
  
"Not bad scavenger boy! I know how to deal with your stupid sand now, so I guess you're out of luck!" Senjeta was not giving up yet though. He jumped into the air and a yellow aura surrounded his body. Before Inuyasha could react, a circular spinning wall of sand and wind surrounded him. Inuyasha lunged at one of the walls, but was thrown back when he found that the wall was as hard as steel. From outside, Senjeta laughed wickedly.  
  
"How do you like it half breed? This is my ultimate technique! It allows me to move around outside my sand wall unseen and strike without being noticed! It makes fighting me very difficult!" Before Inuyasha could blink, Senjeta darted through the wall and cut him in the shoulder with his claws. Inuyasha kicked out at him, but the coyote leader darted back outside of the sand wall. As he turned around, Senjeta came through again and slashed him in the back. The pattern continued for some time. Senjeta would pop out at him like a jack in the box, attack him, retreat, and then attack again. Inuyasha was getting weak. He had taken too many hits from his battle with Shippo and a few more blows would kill him. There had to be some way to beat him. As he considered his options, a flash of purple pink appeared on the wall and a large hole appeared in it. Inuyasha saw Senjeta dart by, and then stop with shock when he saw his wall had been penetrated. Inuyasha knew what to do now. The wind from the rotating wall would be more then enough for tetsusaiga. He raised his sword up and brought it down with earth shaking force.  
  
"Wind scar!!" he commanded. The ground glowed golden yellow, and then a gigantic blast of golden energy erupted from the earth and shot towards Senjeta.  
  
Senjeta did not see the wind scar coming until it was too late. He turned just in time to see the energy engulf him. "Damn you!!" he screamed, and then he was gone.  
  
When the smoke died down, nothing but a crater was left where Senjeta was standing. Inuyasha sighed. It was all over at last. He walked back to where the others were waiting.  
  
"Is he dead?" Sango asked.  
  
"Yeah, he's gone for good. There's no way he could have survived that. Is Shippo alright?" he asked. Sango nodded. Shippo stirred slightly in her arms, but he did not awaken.  
  
"Are you sure you're alright Inuyasha?" Serenity asked. "You look like you really took a beating!"  
  
"I'm alright Serenity. Don't worry about me." he replied. "I'm just glad we can go home." As if on cue, a portal back to the real world suddenly appeared. Before heading off, Inuyasha turned to Kiyashi. "Hey, thanks for the help. Would you like to stay with us?"  
  
"No." Kiyashi said shaking her head. "I appreciate the offer, but I prefer to go it alone. But I must thank you for the help you've given me. It's good now that I have them out of the way now." Kiyashi jumped through the portal and disappeared into the distance.  
  
"I guess we can go home now. I have to leave you guys too." Serenity said. Inuyasha hugged her.  
  
"Alright then Serenity-chan. I'll see you again." he said. He was unaware that Serenity had taken a scorpion out of her pocket and was reaching down the back of his kimono. Soon enough Inuyasha was screaming and rolling around on the ground, trying to kill whatever was crawling down his back. Serenity giggled wildly as she watched her brother. Inuyasha jumped up and grabbed her up by the tail with a snarl.  
  
"That's it you little brat!! I'm going to make you regret you were ever born!" He drew back his fist, but Serenity broke free of his grip and lunged into the portal. Inuyasha jumped after her, screaming unintelligible words and threats at her as he chased after her. Kagome sighed. Yup, things were back to normal.  
  
Review responses will be in the final chapter, so if you just finished reading this, go to the next chapter now. -Randall Flagg2 


	9. Healing a Broken Heart

Welcome to the final chapter of Inner Rage. I want to thank you so much for the reviews you have given me. They really mean a lot to me. Only read the revised chapter seven and chapter eight if you felt that they weren't good enough or wanted more out of them. Here comes the final chapter. I should warn you it is short though. Nevertheless, I hope it pleases you. -Randall Flagg2  
  
Old friend, what are you looking for? After those many years abroad you come with images you tended under foreign skies faraway from your own land. -George Seferis  
  
"Has he come out yet?" Kagome asked worriedly.  
  
"No. He hasn't even said so much as a word since he woke up." Inuyasha replied. It had been a week since their battle with Senjeta, and things had cooled down at last. Well, everything was normal except for one thing. Shippo was in a deep depression over what he had done. He never spoke or said anything to anybody at all. All he ever did was sit alone in one of the village huts, staring blankly at the walls as if he were expecting something to come out of them. Kagome could understand how the little fox felt. He had attacked his friends, almost killed Inuyasha, and Kagome knew that his shame must be great for such an act. She only wished there was a way to help him.  
  
"Inuyasha, maybe you should talk to him. You still haven't apologized to him yet." Inuyasha turned away as if he didn't hear her.  
  
"Come on Inuyasha! You said you would apologize and you haven't done that yet! What happened to that?!" she demanded.  
  
"It's because-"  
  
"Oh I get it!" Kagome said angrily. "You were just saying you would apologize to keep me off your back, weren't you?! How do you manage to live with yourself?!"  
  
"No, it's not that Kagome. It's that I'm afraid of apologizing."  
  
Kagome froze. Inuyasha afraid of something as simple as apologizing? No, that couldn't be. He wasn't afraid of anything! At least not to her knowledge. "Why are you afraid?" she asked. "It's not like he's going to attack you like he did before!"  
  
"It's not that either. It's because I'm afraid that it won't work Kagome. Right now he's in shock and it doesn't seem like he'll come out of it. I'm worried that even if he hears me, he won't snap out of it. You've seen how he is! He just sits there staring at the wall! How can I get through to him?"  
  
Kagome sighed. He was right. It would be difficult to get through to Shippo the way he was. He was almost catatonic from shame and grief. "Well at least try Inuyasha. I don't know what will happen if we can't bring him out of it. I think that because you started it all, I think you should be the one to apologize to him. Maybe that will bring him out of it." Inuyasha sighed and nodded his head. He walked into the hut.  
  
He found Shippo in the center of the hut. The kit was staring blankly at the wall. He did not move when Inuyasha entered the room, nor did he so much as say hello. He just sat there staring at the wall with a blank expression on his face. Inuyasha tapped him on the shoulder, but got no response.  
  
"Shippo? Are you in there?" he asked. Again, no response. "Please hear me out Shippo. I want to say I'm sorry." Then Shippo stirred. He turned around and looked at Inuyasha as if the hanyou had struck him instead of saying he was going to apologize. Whimpering, he shrank away. Inuyasha sighed. He was still in shock.  
  
"Please Shippo, I'm not going to hurt you. I just want to say I'm sorry." he said again. Shippo stared at him as if he had gone crazy. Inuyasha did not apologize for anything he did. Why was he doing it now?  
  
Shippo finally spoke. "Really?" he whispered.  
  
"Yes. You see Shippo, I'm really sorry for what I did. I didn't mean to say the things I did to you a few nights ago. I was just angry and lost control of myself. I also want to say that you're not a burden on us and that I'm sorry about what I said about how I should have let Hiten and Manten kill you. I didn't mean that at all. The thing is Shippo, I admit that I'm short tempered and that I snap a lot, but that's just the way I am. It's hard for me too you know. I only hope you can find it in your heart to forgive me. So what do you say? Will you stop moping around and get on with your life?"  
  
Shippo stared at Inuyasha in disbelief. Had he really heard what he thought he had? No, he couldn't have. But he had. Inuyasha had actually apologized to him. Something in him moved. Shippo lowered his head and his lips began to tremble. Tears welled up in the fox kit's eyes. He had never felt so happy before. Then he flung himself into Inuyasha's arms, sobbing. He buried his face into Inuyasha's chest and began to shake as sob after sob escaped him. Inuyasha hugged him like a parent would a child and rocked him.  
  
"It's alright Shippo. Just let it all out. There is no shame in crying." For some reason or another, Inuyasha started crying along with him. He wasn't sobbing, but one could not say his voice wasn't hitching either. "I'm sorry." he wept, his tears running down his face and splashing gently on Shippo's head. "I'm just so sorry. I won't do anything like this again. I swear on my name I won't hurt you like this again." Inuyasha hiccupped and wiped his eyes with his sleeve. Shippo looked up at him.  
  
"Thank you Inuyasha." he said. "And I'll try not to be such a brat anymore."  
  
"It's alright. We'll always be here for you." Inuyasha whispered. He was not aware that Kagome was watching from outside.  
  
"I knew it Inuyasha. Your tough on the outside and rude to just about anybody you meet, but underneath you're just a big softy." she giggled. Kagome turned away in case Inuyasha was looking behind him. She didn't want him to know she had been watching. She didn't want him to see her.  
  
"So tell me Shippo. What was it like in the coyote tribe?" Inuyasha asked.  
  
"It was really nice. Up to the point where they deceived me, I liked it. They treated me fairly, the way I've always wanted to be treated. Senjeta hit me just that one time, but it was for good reason."  
  
"You got a place to sleep?"  
  
"Yeah. They let me sleep in Senjeta's hut. It was tough getting used to sleeping without Kagome, but I got through it. The only thing I didn't like was the food."  
  
"Why wasn't the food good?" Inuyasha asked.  
  
"It was disgusting. Coyotes are scavengers, so they eat things that are dead already. Each night and morning somebody would bring back some sort of kill for us too eat. It was tough for me because I prefer my meat cooked." Shippo said, wrinkling his nose in disgust at the memory of the food. The first time he had seen what was to eat, he had almost vomited. He was not used to eating raw meat. In the end though, he had relented because it was all there was to eat and he could not let himself go hungry.  
  
"When you fought me, you were pretty good with your sword. Did they teach you how to fight or something?"  
  
"Yeah. Inarki told me Senjeta had ordered me to undergo swordsmanship, so I practiced at it as hard as I could. It was a lot of fun. Senjeta even gave me a real katana to practice with!"  
  
"This place sounds like paradise." Inuyasha said.  
  
"In a way it is. Everybody seemed to get along with one another. I never had any bad experiences except for the time Senjeta slapped me."  
  
"Well that's all behind you now. It's good to have you back with us kid." Inuyasha said. Shippo smiled and hugged him warmly. Inuyasha smiled and hugged him back.  
  
"Thank you Inuyasha. I really feel a lot better now."  
  
"No problem Shippo. Once again, I promise never to say things like that again." As Shippo hugged him, Inuyasha thought something he had never thought before. "Maybe one day you can call me father."  
  
THE END  
  
Review Responses  
  
Rekouri Sentusu: I'm surprised you liked the chapter. I mean the final battle was rushed and no offense, but I think it was written too quickly.  
  
Maru-sha: Well, I'm glad you liked it. I hope this story please you.  
  
Rushyuo: I don't know what you mean in your review by just saying "ah well", but thank you for reviewing. I hope you enjoyed the rest of the story.  
  
And that is Inner Rage. Keep your eyes open for my next one. It will either be a YYH story or a Tenchi Muyo story. See you all again! -Randall Flagg2 


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